On Thin Ice
by eatsleepskate
Summary: After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.
1. The One

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

* * *

_Chapter 1: The One_

**Bella:**

I stepped into the gym, praying that I wouldn't see _her_ or rather _them._ _Please don't be here, please don't be here…_ I prayed silently.

Unfortunately God must have been too busy to answer my pleading prayers.

There they stood, on side by side treadmills. _She _looked more like she was skipping through flowers rather than working out. Not a single drop of sweat was visible on her perfectly sculpted face. Her memorable red hair breezed effortlessly behind her as she ran.

The man beside her spotted me and leaned over to whisper something in her ear. Her eyes narrowed and searched about the gym until they landed on me. I tried to hide behind my hair, but it was impossible considering that I was wearing a ponytail. A malicious smile appeared on her face.

Victoria said something to James and they both slowed to a walk on their treadmills and stepped off to start towards me.

I bit my lip and looked around frantically trying to find an escape but there were none. Sensing that I was trapped, Victoria's vindictive grin grew wider.

"Bella," she greeted me flatly.

"Victoria," I responded in the same flat tone.

She looked around me as if looking for someone and sneered. "I see you _still_ haven't found a partner after _all_ these years," she stated, her eyes widening with fake innocence.

She clung onto James's arm and smirked. "James-y and I have been working together for… oh, two, practically three years now isn't it? We're so, so comfortable with each other. You know that a skater's relationship with her partner is just as important as knowing how to do the tricks… don't you? James and I have finally gotten comfortable with each other's skating, just in time for the Olympics that are just two seasons away, isn't that right James-y…" she cooed.

I stared at her blankly; trying to show my nonchalance when on the inside I was panicking because she was right. She continued ranting about the importance of having a compatible partner which I tuned out mindlessly to concentrate on my own thoughts.

The Winter Olympics were just around the corner—just two seasons away. I had one year to find the perfect skating partner so that I could accomplish my gold medal dreams.

I've been through four failures worth of partners, and I still haven't found the right one.

The first one, Jasper, lasted six months before he made other commitments to my best girlfriend, Alice. We had worked alright together, but I knew that our partnership wouldn't have lasted even if he hadn't started going out with Alice. Balancing skating and a social life isn't easy, it's either one or the other. Jasper had chosen his social life.

James, yes, Victoria's James was my second try. He was nice enough I guess, we worked alright together. He secretly harbored a romantic relationship with Victoria though, and sixth months after we started working together I found them going at it up against the wall of the locker room, I promptly ended our partnership there and then. Shortly after, James informed me that he was planning to drop me for Victoria anyways.

It was a low blow, but it didn't affect me much. There wasn't much chemistry in our skating, and during the practices it felt like I was turning on autopilot instead of putting my heart into it.

Victoria and I were born seemingly to share the spotlight. When she was eight, Victoria moved to the United States to train, but still represented her home country, France. We both trained under the watchful eye of supreme Russian coach, Tatiana Zablosky from the time we were young to our teenage years.

The year Victoria turned eighteen, she decided to switch coaches. She had claimed that the reason being was a disagreement with Tatiana, when I knew that it was probably to get away from me.

I took her departure as a blessing from the heavens above.

The next guy, Jacob, had incredible potential. I had high hopes that he was _the one_. He was great— perfect body, excellent strength to lift me, and all the right skating skills, but a ski accident at Whistler ended his skating career. We almost made it to our one year anniversary before that accident occurred. I still see him every once and a while around the area, but I heard he moved to sunny California.

My most recent attempt, Mike, was a complete bust. The moment I laid eyes on him, I knew it wouldn't work, but Tatiana coaxed me to give him half a year to see if we could work it out. I knew Tatiana was desperate to find me a partner because my time was running short. I guess I was just as desperate when I agreed with her request.

Through our entire relationship, Mike had always been more interested in pursuing a romantic relationship with me, rather than the gold medal.

He probably spent more energy trying to seduce me than he did training. When he lifted me into the air he would sometimes grope my ass harder than necessary, which was merely disturbing and disgusting.

I counted the days until I would be able to drop Mike, and when six months was up I promptly kicked him to the curb—somewhat politely.

It's been two months since I got rid of Mike, and I still haven't found any potential partners. If I don't find one soon I'm going to be in _big_ trouble—heck I'm already in trouble now! The Olympics are only a year and a half away, and when the other teams are choreographing their routines, I'm still trying to find someone to throw and lift me up into the air!

I have high standards for my skating partners, which makes it even harder to find a good one.

First of all, we have to look good together. His height must be well-matched with mine (It's awkward when a man has to lift a woman that's taller than he is, so our height ratio must be a perfect 3 to 5 or maybe 4 to 5. Either that or he has to be at least four or preferably more inches taller than me). He also has to look good beside me to a certain degree (Complimenting eye, hair, and skin tones).

Second of all, he has to be strong enough to lift and throw me.

Thirdly, he must be a consistent jumper because if one of the two partners falls on a side by side jump combination, they are both docked the points. It's all or nothing in pairs skating.

Last, and most importantly, we must have chemistry. The chemistry between couples is what sets apart the gold and silver medal. It's the component that determines the fine line between the winners and the losers.

Sometimes when I meet with potential skating partners and show them this list, they back out right away. I guess it kind of is a demanding request.

"And finally, if you don't have a partner by now, you shouldn't bother to try out for the Olympics," Victoria finished her rant. I snapped my attention out of my thoughts.

"Go to hell," I scowled and trotted towards one of the exercise bikes.

* * *

"It's a sign for me to retire from eligible pairs skating, Tatiana, I know it! If I were meant to win the Olympic gold medal, God would have given me the perfect skating partner by now!" I argued while unlacing my boots. I massaged my sore foot; the practice had been a tough one.

Tatiana, my longtime coach shook her head and tsked her tongue.

"You must be patient," Tatiana chided in her thick Russian accent. "I know good male skater will be here soon. The best things come to girl who wait. Other skaters find partner fast. Pah. Those partner not as good as long awaited one that is for you!"

"How can you be so sure?" I raised my eyebrows.

"I found nice man for you today! Very tall and handsome. He came practicing at rink earlier, says he is looking for partner. I told him you looking for partner too. Said he just moved from Chicago and wanted to test Forks ice rink," Tatiana explained elatedly.

"How do you know he's any better than Mike?" I asked, bored. This wasn't the first time Tatiana had tried to play pair match maker with me.

"I know as soon as I see him skate," she exclaimed proudly. "Told him you will meet him at Starbucks this evening! His name Edward Cullen and you meet him at five thirty."

I sighed. It was worth a shot; hopefully Tatiana's taste had improved since Mike though.

"Alright," I said slowly. "But this I going to be my last try… I'm getting older and I don't know how much longer I can take this intensive training. There is no way I'll be able to stick around another four years."

And it was true; being a figure skater was intense. Almost everyday I spent five hours on the ice and three hours doing off ice exercise. If I don't stop soon, it's eventually going to kill me… or at least give me arthritis.

"Don't be pessimist, Bella. Have faith in Mr. Edward," Tatiana scolded.

I involuntarily rolled my eyes. Tatiana caught my dismissive actions and frowned.

"He could be your ticket to gold medal. Do not let this opportunity waste," she told me seriously, and patted my shoulder. "Well I must go now… Remember five thirty tonight," and she left.

I sat there for a moment and scoffed. While the few friends I had were getting set up on blind dates to find a boyfriend, I went on them to find a skating partner. Pathetic.

I sighed and flipped out my high tech phone that some cell phone company had wanted me to endorse back when I had a career. My fingers flew over the keyboard, typing Alice's number into it. I had called Alice so many times that I'd memorized the number and didn't even have to look at the keyboard when I typed it.

If I was going to meet Edward Cullen—my ticket to the Olympic gold according to Tatiana (rolls eyes)—I wanted to do it right.

I wasn't the type of person to leave things half done.

"Hello!" Alice's singsong voice echoed through the speaker.

"Hey, it's me. I need help picking out an outfit," I informed her, covering my ears for the squeal that would soon erupt on the other end.

Just as expected, Alice squealed three octaves higher than a normal person did.

"Okay, what's the occasion?" she asked, turning all businesslike.

"Meeting a potential partner," I sighed.

"Romantic or skating?" Alice pressed. Alice took my skating business _very_ seriously. She's designed all my competition dresses, practice outfits, gym clothes, and accessories.

"Skating."

"Alright," she didn't sound surprised. "I had one of my visions about some guy coming into your life yesterday! He had bronze-ish color hair, these really nice green eyes, but the rest of the image was fuzzy. I had a _great_ feeling about him throughout the whole thing though! I swear he's the one!"

I rolled my eyes, Alice's visions had never been completely inaccurate, but they were extremely vague.

"The minute I had that vision, I got an outfit pieced together for you!" she continued.

I couldn't help but smile, of course Alice was always on top of all things fashion.

"Wow thanks, I thought there was a reason why I chose you as my best friend," I teased.

"What would you do without me?" she said in mock horror. "Be at my place as soon as you can." I heard a click on the other end, signifying that she had hung up.

I placed my phone back into my bag and looked around sneakily for any signs of Tatiana.

Seeing none, I pulled out a dollar and two quarters from my wallet and ran up to the vending machine to buy a coke. Tatiana had forbidden me to drink anything besides milk, diluted juice, or water after a workout, but coke always relaxed me. Plus, I really, _really _needed it right now.

Coke was like a soothing remedy for me. I loved the cool, fizzy feeling I got when it sloshed smoothly down my throat.

Quickly I inserted my money, pushed the buttons, and grabbed that bottle that fell out.

I slipped it under my arm and headed towards the rink exit doors. I was about three feet away from the door when Tatiana popped up out of no where and grabbed the bottle from behind.

"How many times I have to tell you? No _coke_," she held the bottle disgustedly and threw it into the trashcan.

I sighed dejectedly and took my diluted juice out of my bag. She nodded, approving my choice and walked back towards the coaches' room.

Gazing longingly at the trashcan, I considered fishing out my coke since it had been unopened, but figured that there would be no point in trying.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

If some of the stuff didn't make sense, leave me a review about it and I'll either clear it up by either replying to your review or touching base on it in the next chapter. If it did make sense, please drop a review anyways.

Also, I don't have a beta, because I think I'm pretty good at editing my own work and it helps me get out chapters faster—but if you do find any mistakes let me know.

Thanks.


	2. Forks Arena

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of disastrous figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

* * *

_Chapter 2: Forks Arena _

**Edward:**

When he wasn't looking, I turned to my father and glared at him with all my might. It was his fault I was moving to my own personal hell, Forks, Washington. It was his fault that I had to leave Chicago where my longtime skating partner, Tanya Denali, had lived.

Just when Tanya and I were starting to win the local competitions, he just _had_ to uproot me to this rainy hell.

At first, Tanya and I had even considered for her to come with us, but her parents refused it. Tanya had always been a Daddy's girl, and he hadn't been so keen on the idea of her moving to the west coast just for her figure skating career.

I had begged my parents to let me stay with Aunt Elizabeth back in Chicago while they moved to Forks for my dad's job, but they had declined my offer.

"You'll find another partner in Forks," was what he had told me. "Plus, we've already found you an apartment near us."

Pah, I didn't want another partner in Forks, I wanted _Tanya_. I would_ never _find a partner better than her.

Carlisle had bought me an apartment in Forks to rope me into Washington. How could I refuse to come with them when they had already bought me an _apartment_? He had bought himself and Esme a house that was just minutes away to keep me close.

So here I was, sitting in the back of the car while my adoptive parents, Carlisle and Esme pull up at some rusted building.

I would have driven myself around, but my Volvo was still in the moving process. If I got it by the end of next week I'd be lucky. Meanwhile, the rental car was supposed to be waiting for me at my apartment.

"Here we are, son!" Carlisle exclaimed.

I looked around. There stood a fairly large building that was in dire need of being repainted. The navy paint was peeling off the exterior, revealing a sickening grey color. Above the door was sign: FORKS ICE ARENA.

My mouth dropped open.

"_This_ is the Forks ice arena?" I sputtered.

Both Carlisle and Esme smiled and nodded.

If I were Tanya I probably would have fainted clean away there and then. The arena looked like it dated back to the eighteen hundreds in the condition it was in. There were a few windows that were so badly cracked and dirty that you could barely see through them.

The rink back in Chicago had been a million times better than this one. It was pristine and so clean that it practically glowed. Since the Chicago rink was funded by the government, it got remodeled every five years.

This rink in front of me looked like it had been built by the pilgrims.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Your skates are in the trunk… Grab 'em and lets check the place out," Esme said cheerfully.

If the ice quality turned out to be anything like the building itself, I'd refuse to skate on it. I couldn't risk expensive, newly sharpened blades on cheap ice. No way.

Carlisle and Esme excitedly tittered into the building, hand in hand, while I took my time and trudged slowly towards the door. As superficial as it sounds, I felt embarrassed to be in such an old, ugly building.

The inside of the arena was just as bad as the outside. The tables were made of cheap, dull wood, and one of them was missing a leg. There was a couch that looked as if it used to be white, but had turned yellow and grey with years and years of use.

A few benches were scattered around the place surrounded by skate bags and tennis shoes strewn all over.

It was revolting to think that _this _was where I would be training.

Finally, I turned my head towards the direction of the rink and braced myself for the ugliest, bumpiest, and dirtiest ice I had ever seen.

To my surprise the ice appeared smooth, white, and bright. There wasn't a single bump or crack visible on it. In a sense, it was kind of beautiful. Just by looking at it, I was getting excited. I couldn't wait to feel the smooth edge my blades produced when I glided over the surface.

As much as I hated to admit it, the ice _was_ better than the sheet back at Chicago.

In a rush, I laced up my black skates and walked briskly into through the lobby doors towards the rink. I took off my skate guards (**A/N: Rubber things that protect your blades from damage when walking on all surfaces but the ice)** and glided across, savoring the smoothness. Whoever was the Zamboni driver did a great job.

I couldn't help the wide grin that spread across my face. A great sheet of ice was like heaven to me. There wasn't anything better than feeling your edge run across the slick surface. Yup, it was heaven on earth here… Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.

* * *

Yeah, so I was minding my own business, testing out the Forks ice (which I have to say was quite impressive) when some crazy Russian lady approached me.

"You new here aren't you," she stated, her so loud and commanding that it echoed.

I nodded, "Yes, I am."

"You pair skater am I right?" she asked.

I was kind of taken aback. How could she tell if I was a singles or pair skater just by watching me?

She must have sensed my surprise because she winked and added, "I tell just by way you skate."

For a moment she studied me up and down. I was growing irritated, it wasn't polite to stare.

"You need pretty girl skate with you?" she asked.

"Uhh… Yeah I'm looking for a pretty partner," I replied coolly. I couldn't help but add, "What's it to you?"

A small smile inched onto her face.

"Good, I have just the right girl you got to meet," she beamed.

My eyes widened at her offer. She was being pretty damn forward… But I guess it wouldn't hurt to meet a girl, would it?

I was interrupted from my thoughts when her thunderous authoritative voice rang into my ears.

"She need boy partner bad. I know her since she very little—she dream of becoming a star… Winning Olympic gold! In past few years she already go through four bad partnerships!" she pleaded.

I sighed, it meant to be a sign that I was contemplating her offer, but she took it as an acceptance.

"Good, you meet girl at five thirty today at Starbucks, OK," Russian lady stated. I was getting kind of peeved—she was making all of _my_ decisions for me before I could answer.

I shrugged, "Uh sure."

"Good. Her name Isabella Swan, brown hair, brown eyes, small, slender frame. I will let her know you meeting her," she replied briskly and scurried back into a door that read: COACHES ROOM.

I sighed. Part of me kind of felt bad. Tanya and I had already ended our partnership due to the long distance, but I still felt a little guilty about finding a new girl to skate with me.

Whatever, she wouldn't find out anyways… Plus, if Isabella is anything like her coach, we would be doomed from the start.

The Zamboni door started rolling open, signaling the practice session was over. I skated one last lap around the rink and stepped off. Esme immediately rushed up to me with a bottle of water in her hand.

"How was it darling? Who was that lady you were talking to?" Esme asked.

"It was fine," I said calmly the rink was more than just _fine_ though. "Yeah, some coach thinks that I'd go great with one of her students, Isabella Swan, for pair skating."

Esme clapped her hands together. "That's wonderful! When will you be meeting her?"

"This evening at Starbucks," I said making a face. I hated everything about coffee… The smell, the taste, the warmth, and everything else it offered.

"Wonderful! Wonderful! Oh, I'm so glad Edward… I was kind of afraid you wouldn't find another skating partner after Tanya," she said quietly, patting my shoulder.

"Mom, I haven't even met this Isabella girl yet," I said in a bored tone.

"Yes I know but I have such a good feeling about her in my gut!" she smiled widely, fluttering her hands about to smooth out my shirt.

I sat on the creaky bench and started wiping the ice off my blades. Esme took the opportunity to run off to Carlisle to tell him the _wonderful_ news.

I bent forward to loosening my boot from my foot. When I lifted my head, a girl in her lower twenties with vibrant red hair stood in front of me.

"You looked really good out there," she said coyly. "You must be new, I'm Victoria." She stuck out her hand and I shook it.

"Thanks, yeah I'm Edward Cullen. Just moved here from Chicago," I introduced myself smoothly.

"Really? How interesting… I heard that you pair skate?"

Wow, news got around fast in a small town like Forks. I nodded wordlessly to confirm what she had heard.

"That's fabulous; there aren't many other pair skaters here to hang out with so I'm just _so_ glad that you're here. I take it your partner didn't travel here with you?" she inquired.

I nodded, "She had other commitments back in Chicago."

"Such a shame… You see, I skate with James, who's sitting over there," she pointed at a blonde man with his hair in a ponytail sitting three benches away from us.

"Well, we should get together sometime, I'd really _love_ to get to know you better," she batted her eyelashes and put her hand on my arm.

"Sure," I returned with a dazzling smile. Her eyes widened at this. "I'll see you around, Victoria," her eyes lit up when I said her name.

I stood, grabbed my bag and followed Esme and Carlisle who making their way to the car.

Victoria seemed alright. She was definitely hot, with her fiery red curls cascading down her back; and her aggressive personality… I couldn't help but think that she must be a tiger in the bed. She came off a tad too clingy for my liking, but still sexy.

When I caught up with Esme she sighed and shook her head.

"Oh Edward, we've only been in Forks for a few hours and you're already turning on the charm... How I wish you'd just settle down…" she hinted.

She couldn't have been more obvious. Since last year, Esme had been dropping hints for me to get in a serious relationship.

"Mom, I'm only twenty three. I like playing the field," I grinned.

"If that's what you want," she groaned.

"It is," I agreed.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

By the way, if you're wondering why this story's rated M, there'll be some "scenes of sensuality" (lemons) in the coming chapters. They won't be especially key to the story though, so I'll warn you before they come with page breaks if you would like to skip 'em.

ALSO, hopefully, Edward didn't come across too 'girly' or anything like that. Just because he's a figure skater doesn't mean he's not manly haha… I mean, think about it, being a guy pairs figure skater is a smart career choice because you get to skate with a bunch of pretty girls and hold them by the ass without having them slap you… He knows what he's doing.

At the very end of that chapter I hinted that Edward was kind of a player back in Chicago, so keep that in mind.

Oh, and if you found Edward shallow, that's the way I want him to seem right now, so don't worry about that ; )

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	3. More to Life

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

* * *

_Chapter 3: More to Life_

**Bella:**

"What took so long? It's a quarter past four and it takes fifteen minutes to get to Starbucks from here! We've only got an hour to get you ready! Move it!" Alice panicked.

"First of all, I was stuck behind this really slow truck in a one lane road. And secondly, chill. An hour is plenty time to get me ready," I sighed.

Alice was acting as if I were meeting some famous celebrity instead of a guy that Tatiana had matched me with.

"You have to make a good first impression though!" Alice whined.

"Hey, do you think I get a coke or something from your fridge? I'm parched," I asked hopefully.

Alice shook her head and gave me a sly smile, "Tatiana called me up earlier and gave strict orders to keep you on milk, water, and diluted fruit juice."

I groaned, seriously, that crazy woman was always one step ahead of me.

She hurried me up the stairs into her huge closet. An outfit was laid out on her bed, color coordinated, complete with accessories and all.

"Wow, thanks Alice. This is great… But it's kind of dressy for just coffee, don't you think?"" I asked, surprised.

"It is not _too dressy_!" Alice shot back indignantly.

I put my palms up and giggled. "Overreact much?"

Alice grunted and rolled her eyes. "Put it on already, I still need to do your hair and makeup."

Taking my time, I stripped and started slipping on each article of clothing one at a time. I didn't want to give Alice _too_ much time to torture my hair.

"Hurry up," Alice snapped. "I know that you're trying to shorten the time we have to do your hair and make up. Yup, I know all the tricks in your book, so don't think you can pull something over me."

It was silent for the next moment, which was a sure sign that Alice was up to something. When she wasn't talking she was plotting.

"Bella," Alice addressed me innocently. Her tone said it all—she was up to something.

"What?" I really wasn't in the mood for one of Alice's crazy schemes. Plus, I was having a hard time strapping on the heels she had set out for me.

"Have you ever thought about falling in love? Or at least getting a boyfriend?"

I was taken aback for a moment by her question. The _last_ thing on my mind was 'falling on love'. I didn't have time for stuff like that. I had to focus on my skating career; love would just be a distraction that would ultimately keep me from the gold. I could not _afford_ to fall in love at a time like this.

She took my frozen silence as a sign to continue.

"It's just that, all you do is eat, sleep, and skate. I'm worried that it _can't_ be healthy. And you know what I have with Jasper? That's what I want for you," she told me truthfully. "You need something stable in your life that _isn't _skating."

"Alice, I would not trade _anything_ for my Olympic gold medal, not love, not anything in the world, you know that," I laughed it off. Alice remained uncharacteristically grave though.

"Alright," she said, still uneasy.

I put my hand on her shoulder reassuringly. "Besides the fact that I'm partnerless, I'm perfectly happy with the way things are now."

Her expression softened, "If you're sure…" Suddenly she brightened, "Time for Bella Barbie!"

I groaned.

"You know you love it," Alice sang. Any traces of the seriousness from earlier were gone and replaced with the usual happy aura that seemed to surround her.

For the rest of Bella Barbie time Alice chattered mindlessly about the latest fashion trends. In the meantime, I tried convincing myself that skating was my life and that I was completely satisfied with it, but it was undeniable that the seed of doubt had been planted in my mind.

* * *

"Good luck, I have a good feeling about this one," Alice hugged me before I left her apartment.

I ended up getting to Starbucks five minutes early. There was no denying that I was nervous. And when I get nervous, I tend to speed (don't tell Charlie).

I was putting my skating fate in the hands of Edward Cullen, a stranger—someone that I'd never even met before. Hopefully he would live up and go beyond my expectations.

The large shop was packed with important looking businessmen and women having some company meetings, police officers chattering loudly on their break, and a bunch of high schoolers.

The bell on the door jingled whenever someone entered the store, and each time my heart would race and my head would shoot up anxiously. It was hard to keep track of who entered though since so many people were coming and going.

The clock struck five, then five ten, and there was still no sign of Edward.

At five fifteen I told myself that if I didn't find him in within ten minutes that I'd leave.

Suddenly, I felt someone's cool breath over my shoulder.

"Hello, could I have the honor of ordering a latte for this beautiful young lady?" a man asked huskily.

I turned around to find an attractive bronze haired man standing behind me in all his glory. He grinned sexily at me, and as hot as he was, I took an uncomfortable step away from him. This guy was in my personal bubble and everything about him screamed PLAYER.

I sucked in a breath. Calling him attractive was the understatement of the century—he was gorgeous. I couldn't get ahead of myself though; I was in no position to have a man play a part in my life besides being my skating partner.

"No thank you," I answered politely.

His face fell the teensiest bit, but he regained his cool composure. "No? Do you not like lattes? What kind of drink would you like? Frappucino? Mocha? Tea?"

My mouth started watering, all of those sounded great.

"I have strict orders to only drink water, diluted fruit juice, and milk," I answered honestly.

He laughed. "Aw c'mon babe, one drink couldn't hurt," he urged. I didn't appreciate the endearment.

"Please, tell my trainer that… I'm fine, really. Thank you though," I with a slight edge in my tone; I was starting to get annoyed.

"Alright, well could I _at least_ have your number?" he pressed, snaking his arm around my waist. I shifted uncomfortably. "So we could, ya know—" he waggled his eyebrows—"hang out sometime." Clearly he was implying sex.

"Sorry, I'm actually waiting for someone," I explained, really irritated now. I hated guys like him that used their extreme hotness for sex. I'd been through high school once (which was more than enough), and had seen one to many girls cry for jerks like him.

His eyes lit up. "Well so am I."

A chill tingled up my spine. Could _this_ one hell of a player possibly be the Edward Cullen Tatiana had set me up with? I thought back to how Alice had described the man in her visions… She said that he'd have bronze hair and green eyes. I looked up at Edwards face—bronze hair and greens eyes. Oh god, please don't let it be.

"Are you Isabella Swan?"

Oh my god. _This_ cocky jerk _was_ Edward Cullen.

"Um yes, I am," I averted my eyes from his. "Um listen, I think this was just a big misunderstanding. I really have to go."

I didn't want anything to do with someone like _him_.

"But we just met," he said confusedly. "Here, I have an idea. Why don't we get to know each other better back at my place," he offered.

I groaned, I couldn't believe it; was this guy's overly inflated ego so big that he couldn't take a hint? There was no way that I could train day and night with an arrogant ass like him.

"I just—listen, you're not exactly what I thought you were going to be," I said, wording myself carefully.

A spark of anger ignited in his eyes. "And what did you think I was going to be like?" he asked sharply.

I shrugged and bit my lip. "Just not… Like _this_," I said gesturing to him.

"What do you mean _this_," he said, mimicking my gesture. "Lots of girls think _this_ is perfectly fine—more than fine actually," he added.

"A player!" I blurted out.

He sniffed. "Well, I enjoy playing the field… Hell, I'm young! It's what guys like me like to do."

"Well _I_ for one can't deal with 'what guys like you' do," I shot back, making air quotations. "And therefore, I know that we will not work."

His frowned deepened, but for some reason it was quickly replaced by a victorious grin.

"I know how desperate you are to find someone," Edward taunted.

My jaw hit the floor in shock. Damn it. How did he know that? Tatiana. Tatiana had told him. Tatiana told him about my dreams and all the setbacks I've had. Damn it.

I hunched my shoulders in defeat. At this, his grin expanded, obviously pleased that he had found my one weakness.

"That's it! You _are_ desperate!" he exclaimed, excited with his sudden epiphany. I gulped because he was right. "The Olympics are coming around in less than two years and _you_ are still looking for a partner." His eyes flickered with pleasure. "And you know that I'm probably going to be your last hope. _You_ and _I_ can't mess this up," he finished off.

He smirked triumphantly knowing that he had one that battle.

"T-that's not true," I said shakily. He smirked again, seeing straight through my lie.

"It _is _true and you know it—" he paused. –"Which is why I'll see _you_ in the arena at ten tomorrow morning for practice, with _me_."

With that, he spun around and made his way out the door, leaving me with my mouth hanging open. In Alice's terms, he had me so, _so _whipped right there.

Speaking of Alice, didn't she say that she had had a good feeling about me and Edward? What happened to _that_?

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Also, some of yall requested for longer chapters, but the thing is that I can update more frequently when they're kept a little shorter. Nonetheless, I try to keep each chapter atleast 2000 words.

For those of you that have reviewed both chapters---yall are amazing... You know who you are.

For those of you that have reviewed atleast once--thank you :)

And finally, for those that haven't reviewed at all... well it would really be appreciated.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	4. Sounds Good

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

* * *

_Chapter 4: Sounds Good_

**Edward:**

Shit, it was ten past five, I was late. Hopefully Isabella wasn't big on being punctual.

I started out running early, actually. But halfway out the door, Esme had me run back in to comb my hair. I've repeatedly told her that the girls like it 'disarrayed and messy' [quoting one of my one night stands], but she wouldn't listen.

Then, just my luck, it seemed like I was stopped at every traffic light along the way.

At five fifteen, I ran into the Starbucks, hoping that it was the right one. When the crazy lady told me to meet Isabella Swan at Starbucks, I hadn't known that there was a shop on every block. Coffee addicts.

I looked around the packed coffee shop, trying to find someone that looked like they could be a skater. I wasn't sure exactly what I was looking for, but I had a feeling that when I saw her I'd know.

Okay… What was the description that that Russian lady had gave me of the girl? I couldn't remember. Was it blonde hair with blue eyes? Or was it red hair with dark eyes? No, the red hair and dark eyes was that hot chick, Victoria… Hmm. Maybe I could call her up tonight…

However, my search got sidetracked when I spotted a slender, yet curvy brunette sitting at a table—alone—in the corner.

Forgetting all about Isabella, I strutted towards her. She appeared to be waiting for someone, perhaps a date? A pretty little thing like her was bound to have a boyfriend. Hopefully he'd be a no show if I was going to make my move on her.

I walked up from behind and bent down so that my mouth was next to her ear. Her shoulders tensed, sensing my presence.

"Hello, could I have the honor of ordering coffee for this beautiful young lady?" I asked, in a low tone.

She turned around, and her eyes widened at the sight of me. At that moment, I got a better look at her. Her thick brown hair lay effortlessly down to the middle of her back and her eyes were deep brown, if that was possible.

She had a thin blue sweater on that hugged all the curves that she had in the right places, showing a teensy bit of cleavage. I eyed her appreciatively, hoping that I could get her to spend the night with me.

"No thank you," she answered curtly.

I did a double take, was that a no? It was. Well, that was a first. I wasn't one to give up without a fight though.

"No? Do you not like lattes? What kind of drink would you like? Frappucino? Mocha? Tea?" I named all the drinks I could think of.

She sighed and looked me in the eye.

"I have strict orders to only drink water, diluted fruit juice, and milk," she rolled her eyes.

Mmm, so she was one of those health chicks. Personally I preferred the ones that didn't yap about their diets all the time, but I guess her hotness did make up for it.

"Aw c'mon babe, one drink couldn't hurt," I pressed. And it was true, she had a great body, she was wearing a skirt so I could see her well toned legs.

"Please, tell my trainer that… I'm fine, really. Thank you though," she said.

I was starting to get frustrated, back in Chickago I had been a chick magnet. Was I losing my touch here in Forks? I really needed to get laid, bad.

"Alright, well could I _at least_ have your number?" I asked, trying not to look like I was begging, but a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. "So we could, ya know, hang out sometime." C'mon, c'mon, c'mon, say yes!

"Sorry, I'm actually waiting for someone," the brunette replied.

I raised my eyebrows. "Well so am I."

Then it clicked, the freaky coach had said that her student, Isabella had brown hair, brown eyes, small, and slender frame. I looked back at the girl in front of me. Check, check, check, and check.

"Are you Isabella Swan?" I asked.

"Um yes, I am… Then you must be Edward Cullen," she looked down at the table. "Um listen, I think this was just a big misunderstanding. I really have to go."

What? She had to go?

"But we just met! Here, I have an idea. Why don't we get to know each other better back at my place," I offered. Hopefully some great sex would warm her up to me.

She bit her luscious lower lip, and it took all my strength to restrain myself from attaching my own lips to hers at that very moment.

"I just—listen, you're not exactly what I thought you were going to be," she said. I recoiled in surprise and my patience bristled.

The nerve of her! What did she expect?

"And what did you think I was going to be like?" I snapped. It was the first time a girl had complained about me.

"Just not… Like _this_," she shrugged, motioning towards me.

"What do you mean _this_," I said, mimicking her gesture. "Lots of girls think _this_ is perfectly fine—more than fine actually."

I knew tons of girls back in Chickago who would be thrilled if I even talked to them, and this spoiled Isabella thought I wasn't good enough for her?

"A player!" she pointed out.

Damn, she was really starting to get on my last nerve. Just a few hours earlier, my own mother had called me out for my ways with women, and here I was getting the same lecture from a hot girl. Why couldn't women understand? Regardless, for some reason I couldn't seem to get enough of Isabella.

"Well, I enjoy playing the field… Hell, I'm young! It's what guys like me like to do," I said, exasperated. It was the same explanation I had given Esme.

"Well _I_ for one can't deal with 'what guys like you' do," she fired back. "And therefore, I know that we will not work."

I couldn't help but notice that she was even sexier when she was angry.

But still, she had no right to judge me. I thought back to the little information her coach had given me about her.

Her coach had said that she had already gone through four skating partnerships that didn't work out. I could kind of get why; her quick temper probably drove away a lot of men.

I thought even harder, and remembered that she had also said that Isabella had dreamed of winning the Olympic gold from a very young age.

From what I could tell, she looked to be about in her lower twenties. That was considered old for a figure skater, if she wanted to win the Olympics she would have to find a partner, and fast.

I felt my mouth shape into a condescending grin. Obviously Isabella needed a partner, pronto, and I was her last hope.

"I know how desperate you are to find someone," I called her out on it. It was a low blow, but I knew it would work.

Her mouth dropped open, forming a perfect 'o' shape.

"That's it! You _are_ desperate!" I exclaimed.

She gulped, knowing I was right. For a moment, I couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

"The Olympics are coming around in less than two years and _you_ are still looking for a partner. And you know that I'm probably going to be your last hope. _You_ and _I_ can't mess this up," I finished.

I had this one in the bag now. The expression in her eyes said it all; I had beaten her at her own game.

"T-that's not true," she stammered. The stutter in the first word gave her away though; she knew I was beyond right.

"It _is _true and you know it—" I paused, trying to think of a way to finish her of–"Which is why I'll see _you_ in the arena at ten tomorrow morning for practice, with _me_."

On that note, I turned and walked victoriously out the door. I wish I could have taken a picture of the expression on her face. The daze, shock, and anger on it—priceless.

Walking down the sidewalk to my car, I noticed a pretty decent—yet fake—blonde talking on her cell phone by a streetlight. Just by looking at her though, I knew Isabella would have been a better lay. Well, beggars can't be choosers.

I eyed her suggestively, and she immediately whispered something to the person on the other line and snapped her phone shut. She gave me one of those finger waves and motioned for me to come over.

"Hey baby," I greeted her gruffly. "Wanna go back to my place for some _fun_?"

I walked closer, and she ogled me appreciatively. She mumbled something about how great my body was. I couldn't help but breathe a small sigh of relief—thank God I hadn't lost my touch with the ladies over here.

"For you, sexy? Anything," she replied, grabbing onto the collar of my shirt and ran her clammy hands through my hair.

"Great, my car's this way."

* * *

The next morning, after Rena—or was it Lena? Whatever—finally left my apartment; I decided to head over to my parent's house to check it out. Esme bombarded me with questions the minute I walked through the doors.

"How did it go? Did you like her? Did she like you? What silly question, of course she liked you. What was she like? Was she pretty? How did it go?" Esme asked, talking a mile a minute.

I raised my palms up. "She was interesting," I concluded, trying to sum up my meeting with Isabella. "We're meeting up later for practice."

"Wonderful! That's just wonderful! I can't wait to meet her! You have to invite her over for dinner sometime!" Esme chattered, her eyes shining with enthusiasm.

I forgot to mention that I wasn't sure if Isabella and my partnership would last long enough for her to meet her.

"Sure, sure…whatever," I mumbled dismissively.

I headed over to the computer to do some research on Isabella. After all, my knowledge on her had come in handy yesterday when I called her out on being desperate.

I typed her name into the Google search bar. Whoa, she had 200,000 hits—not all of them were necessarily her though.

My eyes scanned over the headlines, chuckling when I saw that most of them addressed how Isabella and some guy had ended their partnership.

May 2005, Isabella Swan and Jasper Whitlock ended.

January 2006, Isabella Swan and James Tracker terminate their affiliation.

April 2007, Isabella Swan and Jacob Black part due to Jacob's ski accident.

And most recently, October 2008, Isabella Swan breaks it off with Mike Newton.

To my great disappointment, none of the articles really went into detail about what led to the break up.

Without warning, Esme burst through the door joyously. Quickly, I closed the window with Isabella's search results on it. I knew Esme would disapprove of me googling Isabella. She would think of it as an invasion of privacy.

"Listen to this, Edward: Representing the United States of America, Isabella Swan and Edward Cullen!" Esme announced, pretending to be holding a microphone. "I was just making breakfast when I realized that your names sound fabulous together! I can't wait to hear the announcers do it on TV!"

I pretended to act indifferent, but couldn't help but agree that they _did_ sound sorta nice together.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

FYI: Weekends are my time to recover and plan the next few chapters, so don't expect any updates for the next two days or so. Thanks for understanding.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES


	5. Screw You

**Summary:**

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 5: Screw You_

**Bella: **

I got to the rink fifteen minutes early to warm up. Considering how Edward had been late to Starbucks I didn't expect anything different with this meeting.

Looking into the arena, there were only three people on the ice. Victoria and James were in there as I expected, and in the center was a man I couldn't recognize since he was spinning so fast that he blurred. Even an average American that didn't know anything about skating would know that he was good.

Finally, his spin slowed and he glided out of it effortlessly.

I squinted and saw a familiar bronze haired head… Squinting even harder I realized that the great spinner was none other than Edward Cullen. I felt my eyes bugging out of their sockets.

He was sporting a tight black shirt with black pants. Very customary for a man skater's outfit, but he looked infinitely better in it than James did. Even from far away I could see the muscles that lined his upper body.

Without any warning, he looked in my direction and caught me staring. He waved, flashing me a brilliant half smirk, half grin. I scowled and looked away; he was such a cocky ass.

I hoisted my leg up on the bench to stretch out my hamstring that always got tight when I was stressed out.

A few seconds later I stole a glance at the rink and noticed that Edward wasn't on the ice anymore. Huh. Wonder where he could've gone.

The next moment I felt a tap on my shoulder. Without turning around I exhaled irritably.

"What do you want, shithead?" I snapped.

"Isabella Marie Swan!" a voice that wasn't Edward's gasped. Instead, it had a Russian accent to it. Aw hell.

"That is no good way to speak to coach!" Tatiana chastised. "Today you do fifty extra laps!"

"Sorry Tatiana, I thought you were Edward," the moment that left my mouth, I immediately regretted it.

"Shame! Proper ladies no speak those disgraceful word! That is no way to speak to gentleman like Mr. Edward!"

Revulsion took over me. I couldn't believe that she had used the word 'gentleman' and 'Edward' in the same sentence. If Edward Cullen was anything, it definitely wasn't a gentleman. I wonder what her reaction would be if she knew the number of girls Edward has fucked with.

"Miss Tatiana how nice it is to see you again! How has your morning been?" Edward's unnaturally sickening sweet voice came from behind.

Tatiana clapped her hands together.

"Wonderful, Mr. Cullen! I see you practicing so hard—"Tatiana said adoringly—"See young people like you work so hard; put me in such good mood!" Her tone lowered. "I wish Isabella work half as hard as you!"

For the second time in the past ten minutes, my jaw dropped to the ground again. The asshole had the nerve to make _me_ look bad in front of _my_ coach! Quietly, I fumed in the stretch I was in.

"Hopefully some of Mr. Edward discipline rub off on you, Isabella," Tatiana winked at me and strode away.

Oh my god. This could not be happening.

"I hate you," I glared at Edward.

"Aw c'mon babe, I just wanted some brownie points with that coach of yours. It's not fair for you to hog all of them," he pouted.

I grabbed my skate bag and started lacing up.

He glanced amusedly at my beat up skates.

"How long have you had those?" he asked.

"Four years," I sighed.

"They look like they're going to fall apart any second."

"I know," I said meekly.

"Why don't you get a new pair?"

"Can't afford them," I muttered.

Skates were expensive, ranging at about a thousand dollars for the actual boot and five hundred for the blade. On my barely existing rink salary I couldn't afford a new pair.

"Oh," he was quiet for a second. "They're really broken down, it could be dangerous."

I closed my eyes; did he think that I didn't know that? The boots were so broken down that they could barely support my weight. Last year I started to fall out of my jumps because of it.

"I could… You know, buy you a new pair," he offered softly.

I glowered at him. _Of course_. He was rich. Everyone in the rink was rich but me. Skating was an expensive sport. The ice time, coaching, outfits, skates, and training all added up to one huge bill. A study had shown that figure skating was the second most expensive sport behind horseback riding.

I was the only skater in the rink who actually had to work their ass off for their ice time. The rest of them just had their parents swipe their platinum credit cards.

"Thanks but no thanks. I don't need your charity," I seethed.

"Alright, it's just that…" he trailed off when I shot him another death glare.

"Let's go." I stood, heading towards the entrance to the arena.

One step onto the ice immediately soothed the stress that had been building inside me. Skating had always been a great tension reliever during my teen years when I had been swamped with school, gossip, and those other silly teenage problems.

Unfortunately, whatever wonders the ice did to me disappeared as Victoria glided towards Edward and my direction.

"Bella!" she cried, putting on her fakest, sweetest voice in front of Edward. "I see you've met Edward!"

My eyebrows shot up to my scalp. When had _they_ met?

"Yeah, Tatiana paired me with him and we're going to try it out today," I replied icily.

Victoria frowned but immediately replaced it with a phony 'I have to be nice to Bella right now because a hot guy is by her' smile.

"Oh, ha! Well, hopefully fifth times the charm," she sneered.

Edward muffled a laugh, obviously not getting the insult behind her words.

She skated away, still cackling at her joke that wasn't even funny.

"So everyone calls you Bella? Huh. It suits you," he mused.

"Only my close friends," I sniffed.

"You sure as hell didn't look close to Victoria, and _she_ called you Bella," Edward pointed out.

I remained silent, not too much because I was surprised he had noticed the tension between Victoria and I, but really because I didn't have some witty remark to shoot back at him. Knowing myself, I'd probably be laying in bed tonight when I thought of one.

"So partner," Edward teased. "This'll be interesting."

Indeed it would. Carefully, he came up from behind me at placed his right hand on my waist and his left hand in my left hand **(1)**.Normally, the first time two unfamiliar pair skaters touched or moved together it was awkward, but with Edward it felt alright for some reason. Maybe it was because our heights were so well matched.

I remember how the first time Mike touched me, he had a panic attack. We ended up having to rush him to the emergency room since he passed out from overexcitement and an extremely painful hard on.

"3...2…1," Edward counted down. In perfect sync we stroked right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot around the length of the rink. On the ends we counted each stroke on our crossovers to make sure that we would be synchronized. Again, with all my previous partners it had taken awhile to perfect synchronization, but strangely as it was, it had come naturally with Edward and me.

I noticed that Edward's skating had a strong manly quality to it, each of his strokes having twice as much power as mine, yet at the same time his style was very polished. It was the first time I'd ever found a man with a perfect balance of masculinity and feminism.

We continued for a few more laps, both of us concentrating fiercely while counting out the steps.

Suddenly, Tatiana's voice came from out of the blue.

"Bravo! Bravo!" she applauded. "I knew you two perfect together!"

I blushed and Edward ran his hands through his hair.

As much as I hated to admit it, he _was_ very good… Tons better than I had expected.

"We start you guy's training tomorrow!" Tatiana declared. Edward and I gave her a startled glance. We had just skated the first time together today and she was already expecting us to go into full training mode tomorrow?

Sensing our distress, Tatiana spoke up.

"You guys want to be ready for Olympic Game?" she asked sternly.

I nodded fiercely, as did Edward, except a little more slowly.

"Then you guys must start tomorrow. We have no time to waste. Time flying by like airplane," Tatiana instructed.

Edward raised his hand tentatively like he was in a school class and grinned arrogantly.

"Mr. Cullen?"

"Tomorrow isn't really going to work for me… I kind of have my schedule all booked up, you know, with the ladies," he explained slyly.

"Oh really?" Tatiana raised her eyebrows. "I'm afraid you have to tell pretty girl that you have other obligation. You are making commitment if you want to work with me," she said. I noticed how she didn't plural the word 'girl', obviously she didn't know that Edward had more than one lady in mind.

Edward's eyes narrowed in response but he didn't dare complain. _That_, I knew was a smart decision.

For the first time, I found myself smirking at him instead of the other way around.

Back in school I had missed billions of sleepovers, parties, and even my own graduation ceremony due to my skating schedule and Tatiana's strict instruction. Pretty soon people just stopped inviting me. I'd lost count of all the sacrifices I'd made for my career years ago.

"I see you two tomorrow morning at six. That is when rink is empty and best time to practice," Tatiana nodded and turned to go back to the coach's room.

When she was out of ear shot, Edward started whining about how Tatiana had made him cancel his dates.

"Shit, I can't believe that crazy lady thinks she has the right to tell me to cancel on my girls," he protested. "And she expects me to be at this dump at six tomorrow? Bullshit!"

"Get used to it, champ," I said, smacking him lightly on the back. Six A.M. was no big deal to me since I'd been doing it as long as I could remember. And over the years I'd realized that I liked the sereneness of the early morning sessions a lot. It was always so quiet and gave me great peace of mind. Whenever Victoria came she always blasted her obnoxious music with lyrics that were sung in French.

Edward continued ranting about how Tatiana was 'cramping his style' but like I did with all things I didn't want to hear, I tuned him out. Instead, I looked past him at the huge digital clock on the wall, and saw that it was a quarter to twelve. The freestyle session was over and I had to go resurface the ice.

Yup, of all people I'm a Zamboni **(A/N: A Zamboni is that big machine that smoothes the ice) **truck driver. Since I barely have enough to pay Forks Arena for ice time, they offered me a job here to pay for it.

It took a few times of practice, and I barely missed the wall a few times, but now I'm a pro.

"Hey, I gotta go," I said quickly.

"Huh? Where?" Edward stopped, mid rant.

I pointed in the direction of the Zamboni door.

"What?" he asked; still confused.

"I need to resurface the ice. I do it for ice time," I said quickly.

Driving the Zamboni had always been embarrassing for me. I had been teased endlessly by Victoria and some of the rich snobs that skated in the arena.

His eyes widened in surprise, and a small smile crossed his face. I braced myself for teasing from him too, but he surprised me with his compliments.

"No shit! You're _the _Zamboni driver?"

"Yeah," I blushed.

"Whoa, I never thought…" he ran his hand through his hair again. "Well you do a good job," he said genuinely. Pride swelled through me. It was the first time anyone had told me that.

"Well I would stick around but I gotta go meet up with Victoria in an hour."

My stomach twisted into knots. The moment I started to warm up to him, he just _had_ to remind me of the big man whore he was. Even worse, he was a man whore with no taste in girls.

"You're meeting with Victoria? Like for a date?" I asked flatly.

"Yeah, she's hot," he said, flashing me a brilliant smile.

Oh god, of all people, he was screwing around with Victoria.

Disgusted, I grabbed my water bottle from the boards and exited the rink as fast as one could say 'Edward is an asshole'.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	6. Bonding Time

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 6: Bond-ing Time_

**Edward: **

*_Edward, you're the man! Edward, you're the man!* _I groaned and turned off my alarm clock. I'd bought one of the ones where you could record something and set it as your alarm. One of my old girlfriends Rachel (or was it Reese?) had recorded it for me.

"Edward…" some girl beside me groaned. "Turn it off."

I looked over to see a typical slut lying next to me that I must have picked up at the club. Huh, I guess when I got drunk my taste got a little off.

I tried to recall the events that had occurred after I left the rink with… Oh yeah, Victoria. I remember how she took me to her place, where I made her scream my name and cum at least three times. Yup, I had to thank my parents for all those piano lessons from when I was younger.

She wasn't anything special though—just another easy fuck.

I took advantage of my last day as a free man before Tatiana's hectic skating schedule took over my life.

Huh, I think I went through at least six girls yesterday—new record. I hope they lasted me until the Olympics when I could stop training. I highly doubted that though. Knowing myself I'd find some way to bend Tatiana's rules.

I sat up and was immediately taken over by dizziness and a headache that hurt like hell. Hangovers sucked.

"Staaaay," the blonde beside me slurred, she latched herself onto my arm.

Annoyed, I pulled away and she collapsed back onto the bed, already in a deep sleep.

With my eyes still closed, I blindly made my way to my closet and pulled out a T-shirt and black pants **(1)**.

Miraculously, I managed to keep my eyes open as I drove down the road to the arena. When I pulled into the parking lot, I saw Bella's old red truck was already there. I was too tired to care that she had beat me though and my head was still pounding.

I entered the doors and there she was, with her forehead touching her knees in a stretch that looked painful. She was wearing tight black leggings that hugged the sexy curve of her hips and I couldn't help but ogle **(2)**.

"Whoa you got here early," I commented.

She looked up and waved. It seemed like all the traces of irritation from yesterday when I told her I was going out with Victoria were gone. Hmm…

"Morning sunshine," she chirped. How could anyone be so peppy at this ungodly hour? "I had to come early to resurface the ice."

Oh, right. I forgot that she had to work for the rink for extra money.

She took in the bags under my eyes, messy hair, and tired face.

"You look terrible," she remarked.

"Some of us have lives outside of the rink and like going clubbing until after midnight," I said sarcastically.

"Oh."

Seriously, from what I'd heard this girl spent ninety nine percent of her life in the rink. It was like her second home. That was probably why she was perpetually pale. She was one person that wouldn't have to worry about skin cancer.

"Have you ever been to a bar or club, or anything?" I asked curiously.

She grimaced. "I've never had a drink in my life."

My eyes widened, this girl, who was probably at least twenty one had never had a sip of my good ol' friend tequila.

"Wow."

I silently made it my mission to take her to a local club and get her drunk for the first time in her life. It would probably do her wonders. She really needed to loosen up and realize that there was more to life than skating.

I reached over to take my skates out of my bag so I could start lacing up, but was stopped by her placing her hand on mine.

"Instead of practicing, Tatiana wants us to pick the music for our routine today," she explained.

"Oh."

It felt like everything was moving too fast—and the minor hangover I had still wasn't helping. I just met the girl yesterday and we were already choosing the music for our program?

She took in my expression and nodded sympathetically. "I feel like it's moving really fast too. Tatiana wants to get started as soon as possible since technically we're behind schedule… You know, since we started out our partnership so late," she said softly.

"So do you have any ideas for the music choice?" she asked. "There's a computer in the office that has this great music software."

"I've always wanted to skate James Bond," I mused.

Bella made a face.

"We are _so_ not skating to James Bond," she said seriously, crossing her arms over her chest.

"No," I yawned. "It'd be perfect. I could wear all black with a 007 on the back of my shirt, and you could wear this tight, slick black dress…"

I started day dreaming about the dress I would put Bella in. It would be a glossy black with a white belt sewn onto it. I'd make sure that it turned out so tight that her breasts practically pop out of it. I licked my lips. Yup, that would be the day.

She slapped my arm. "Edward, the judges don't want a stripper girl."

"I bet the ones that are guys wouldn't mind it," I teased.

She closed her eyes and took a breath. "I was thinking that we could base our program **(A/N: A 'program' is what skaters call their routines)** on a love story," she sighed, a dreamy smile oozing onto her face.

Ha! There was no way I was going to do some 'love story' routine. Gag me now.

"Tanya would have agreed to skate to Bond!" I whined.

"Tanya?" she questioned.

"My old skating partner from Chicago. When my dad made me move I had to leave her," I sulked.

I look back now, and I seriously don't know what I was thinking when I told her this. Must have been the fault of the pounding headache I had. It was like having the jealous ex girlfriend and the girlfriend getting in a catfight together. Not a smart tactic for a guy to use.

"Tanya? Huh? Okay, well if you want to skate to James Bond so bad why don't you just move your sorry little ass back to Chicago?" she fumed.

"That's not what I meant," I said lazily. "All I'm saying is that _Tanya_ would have let us skate to James Bond. She probably would've agreed to the outfit too."

Her eyes blazed with anger. "Tanya, Tanya, Tanya," she shook her head. "I am _not_ Tanya, and I do things differently around here."

"Still, Tanya would've agreed," I mumbled.

Unfortunately I think she may have heard my last remark. Bella looked down at her feet and I saw her eyes glistening. Was she seriously crying? Shit, I hated when chicks got all emotional and cried.

"Hey," I said dumbly. "Are you… crying?"

She sniffled and wiped her eyes. "Why are you making this so damn difficult? For the past ten years, all I've ever wanted is to find someone that could lead me to the Olympic gold. And now, you—my last chance at it—is telling me that you'd rather be skating with your old partner, _Tanya_?" she wailed.

"I never said that I'd rather be with Tanya," I said quietly.

"Well you implied it with: _Tanya would have let us skate to James Bond_," she mimicked. She took a deep breath. "Whatever! I think I'm PMSing right now, God. Makes me wonder why I'm still doing this pair skating shit. I always knew I should have taken up singles instead."

I didn't know how to respond to that.

"Edward," she addressed me, suddenly calm. "I am trying _so_ hard to not lose my cool right now. Because I _really_ want us to work out."

Oh yeah, the whole Olympic gold dream.

"Please," she begged. "Please make this at least a little easier on us…On me."

I looked into her eyes, which were round with desperation. I couldn't help but pity the girl. Figure skating was all she had ever known; not winning Olympic gold was an unimaginable impossibility to her.

"I'll try my best," I said reluctantly. I wasn't used to agreeing with others—especially girls—since I almost always got my way. Yet there was something about Bella that seemed to bring out the slightly more compassionate side of me.

"Thanks. That really means a lot to me."

I knew what she was saying was genuine. Her whole life revolved around the ice. It was just the way she was.

Right before she reached the desk she tripped over and knocked over a stack of bills to her right.

"Aw shit. Not again," she moaned.

I stifled a chuckle.

"You know what doesn't make sense to me? You're so graceful on the ice, yet you're a klutz on carpet. Care to explain?"

It was true, just one look at how she moved on the ice yesterday, kind of blew me away. Her skating had a graceful edge to it, and she seemed dainty as a flower. Yet somehow amidst all of that, she still had the necessary fiery presence that was needed for the 'wow factor'.

She grumbled something about me being an asshole that I didn't quite catch.

More carefully this time, she sat down at the computer and opened the music software.

"After you left I stay here trying to a piece that might work for us. It's called 'Love Story' and it's by Carl Davis **(A/N: If you can, go on iTunes or some similar program to look it up. It's beautiful.)**," Bella murmured.

Oh wow. She'd stayed at this shit arena that smelled like rotten feet just to find something that we could skate too. The girl really put all her heart and soul into all this skating crap.

She pressed the play button and the sound of the opening piano notes filled the room. I closed my eyes so that I could concentrate on the piece better.

The song lasted approximately four minutes, and through the whole thing it felt like the melody itself was telling me its own story.

In the beginning it was as if two depressed beings had just met and were slowly falling in love—showing each other the joys of life and love along the way.

The middle section was faster, and livelier. It seemed like the notes were saying that this part was the peak in the relationship where everything was going blissfully right for the two.

And finally, in the ending the tune slowed, signifying that the two lovers were being separated because they were forbidden in some way.

I had always been a sucker for a beautiful piano piece. Might as well replace my cock with a vagina, but it was true. From day one, Esme had taught me how to appreciate the harmonic sound the magnificent instrument produced.

"What do you think?" Bella asked, breaking me from the trance the piece had put me in.

I'd never revealed my true feelings towards classical music. It'd damage my reputation and I'd be officially labeled a 'wuss'. Surely that wouldn't go well with the babes.

She grinned and slapped my arm gleefully. "C'mon, you've gotta admit that you like it."

"It was alright…" I countered, distracted because her warm hand was placed on my arm. I could imagine that same hand cupping my cock, stroking it… Just thinking about it was making me hard. I shook my head, trying to clear the naughty thoughts from my mind.

She pulled back and a concerned look appeared across her flawless face. "No really, be honest. We can't create the chemistry in the music if you don't like it."

I sighed in defeat. "I like it, honest."

"Thanks for not being difficult," she said, her eyes twinkling with relief, hand patted my shoulder and the explicit fantasies from earlier returned.

I muttered something unintelligible, embarrassed by her praise. Plus, I was having a _hard_ time concentrating (pun intended).

I stood abruptly. "Uh, Bella, I gotta go to the bathroom."

Before she could respond I rushed out the door to relieve my throbbing member.

Gah, I hated this. Sometimes chicks could be stark naked in front of me and I still wouldn't be turned on, but with Bella, once simple touch drove my hormones wild.

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Also, I would have given you a link to the song on Youtube, but I couldn't find it…

Gah, i'm not particularly proud of this chapter.. but you do what you gotta do :)

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	7. All The More Fun

**

* * *

Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 7: All the More Fun_

**Bella:**

"Please, please, _please_, Bella!" Alice whined. "You haven't been out with us in so long because of your hectic skating schedule. We miss you!"

I sighed reluctantly. Edward had just left to go the bathroom when Alice had called. Her timing was uncannily impeccable—almost as if she knew that I was alone at the moment. When I called her out for she giggled and said, "Visions! Psychic! Duh!"

"Tatiana doesn't—" before I could finish my excuse, Alice interrupted.

"Don't worry; I've already talked to the almighty Tatiana about it… She agreed that you deserved a night off," Alice continued pleading.

_Of course_, she had already gotten Tatiana's approval.

"C'mon, you have no excuse not to go," Alice said.

I exhaled in resignation. "Alright, I'll go."

A squeal erupted on the other end of the line. "Finally! You won't believe how much the all of us miss you!"

To tell the truth, I missed the rest of the gang too. I've seen Jasper around when I go to Alice's but it's been ages since I saw Emmett and Rosalie in flesh. We all hit off back in high school when we formed. They were the only ones that didn't seem to mind my busy agenda, so it wasn't a wonder why we almost immediately got along.

"They're going to be so excited when I tell them that you're coming!" Alice continued.

I looked at the time on the computer. Edward had gone for almost twenty minutes, what the hell was keeping him?

As if he read my mind, Edward emerged through the door, holding two Starbucks bags and waters.

Seeing that I was on the phone, he silently handed me one of the bottles and a warm bacon and egg sandwich. It smelled great. I hadn't had one of these in forever since they were kind of expensive compared to something homemade. Instead, I tried to use my low food budget just to buy the basics.

I smiled at him gratefully. I hadn't eaten anything all morning and was starved.

Alice continued chattering about how excited she was on the other end.

"Hey Alice?" I stopped her. "Edward's back, I'll talk to you later about tonight okay?"

"No! Wait!" Alice practically screamed. "We all want to meet him! Bring him to Olive Garden at six with us tonight!"

I frowned. "I don't like having anything but a work relationship with my skating partners."

To keep things uncomplicated, I always kept my relationships with my partners strictly at the rink. I didn't like mixing my practically extinct pleasure life with skating.

"Aw c'mon! It'll be such a great opportunity for you to get to know him better," Alice supplied.

I sniffed. I think I knew _more _than enough about Edward's personal life.

"Please… I want to meet him so bad! And Emmett wants to evaluate him to make sure he's good enough! Plus, you kind of should bring a date, because we're all going to be paired off…"

"Fine, I'll ask him, but don't be too disappointed if he says that he already has plans," I replied, and hung up.

I ignored the curious look he was giving me.

"Thanks for the sandwich," I said sincerely, I started taking out my bag to pay him back. "How much do I owe you?"

He shook his head. "My treat."

"I really think I should—"

He cut me off. "It's fine. Really."

I pouted but didn't say anything.

"So… Was there something you wanted to ask me?" he asked with a sly smile.

"Oh… Yeah. My friend, Alice wanted to know if you could come to dinner with us tonight," I explained. "But don't worry, I'd _totally_ understand if you were already booked up with your other, err, date, or should I say date_s_" I emphasized.

"I'm free," he said simply.

My head whipped in his direction. "Are you _sure_ you don't have some bar or club to go to? Because there won't be _any_ hard feelings I you can't come."

"Nope, I can come. I just have a _few_ girls I have to cancel on; this'll probably be much more interesting anyways."

It made me wonder how many a 'few' girls were to him.

I groaned, if I had known that Edward was going to be 'free' then I wouldn't have asked him. He smirked, knowing that he had taken me by surprise.

"What time?" he asked.

"Six at Oliver Garden," I responded unwillingly.

"Great I'll pick you up at five thirty. Just write down your address and I'll input it into my GPS."

* * *

It was five twenty five; Edward would be here in just a few minutes.

I was in my kitchen, when I heard the creaking of someone's footsteps coming from near the door. Someone had broken in. My heartbeat quickened, and I grabbed the huge club that I kept hanging on the wall for emergencies, tightening my grip on it.

I stepped into the hallway, and screamed when I spotted a dark figure looming by the doorway with his back to me.

I charged up to the man and kicked him in the back of the knees, managing to successfully knock the wind out of him.

"What the hell?" he cursed. He limped, and reached over to the light switch.

Light suddenly flooded the room, momentarily blinding me.

When I regained my sight, Edward stood in front of my cursing so ferociously that it would have made a sailor blush.

"Edward?" I asked, dropping the club. "How did you get in here?"

"Schmoozed the lady in the lobby for the key," he panted. I rolled my eyes but couldn't help but giggle in relief. _Of course_ Edward would use his manly charms to get whatever he wanted.

"You can't just sneak into my apartment like that!" I threw my hands up in the air. "I thought it was going to be a repeat of the last time!"

"The last time?" he raised his brow.

"About a year and a half ago some burglar snuck into here by breaking through a window," I shuddered, recalling the horrific experience. "Luckily, I had this club handy and knocked him unconscious," I patted the club affectionately.

Edward's eyebrows knitted together in concern.

"Bella," he said slowly. "I don't really think it's safe for a girl like you to be living alone in this part of town. I was driving along the street in front of this place and there were people getting mugged around every corner."

He was right. Yet he was so wrong at the same time.

Every night I would toss in turn in my sleep, fearing one of the thugs from the streets nearby would try to sneak in. Unfortunately it was a risk I would have to take. This was the cheapest living arrangement I could find, since I needed as much money possible for my skating bills. Even though this was the cheapest place, I still had a hard time paying rent. Speaking of rent, had I remembered to pay last month? Before I could obsess, I cleared the lingering worries from my mind.

"It's the least expensive place I could find," I reminded him.

"Oh… Okay," he said. His expression remained cautiously indifferent.

I checked the time on my phone. "We should get going. My friends are dying to meet you. By the way, you'll probably notice a gorgeous blonde and a cute little dark haired girl at the restaurant. They're off limits. If you flirt with them their boyfriends, or in Rosalie's case, husband, will pummel you," I warned.

He flashed me a dazzling grin. "Bella, I can get whatever girl I want. A boyfriend doesn't faze me… Plus, after a few rounds I can make them forget about their so called boyfriends or husbands," he boasted.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," I muttered.

He opened the door for me, "Ladies first."

I wasn't surprised to see an expensive looking car in the front of my building. He had parked it next to my beat up truck, and the comparison was painful.

Silently he slipped into the driver's seat.

"So, what are your friends like?" he started the conversation out casually.

"They're all a tad eccentric, a select few that are more than others. I met Alice and Rosalie in high school and we all immediately hit off when we found that we all hated the same snobby popular girl. Rosalie and my brother, Emmett, started going out a few months later, after they met at some party. They're married now and live about twenty minutes away from me."

He nodded; it astonished me that he actually seemed interested in what I was saying about my personal life.

"A few years back, I skated with Jasper. When I introduced him to Alice it was like love at first sight. Soon after that, he retired from eligible skating to spend more time with her."

"Rosalie, Alice, and I are like sisters," I laughed. "We tell people that God would have made us siblings, except He didn't think our mother would be able to handle us all together."

Edward gave an appreciative chuckle.

"Emmett, like I said earlier is my older brother. He always looks out for me, no matter what… So don't be offended if he seems critical of you later."

"What about you? What's your family like?" I asked.

"Well…" he paused to think. "There's not much to say. Esme and Carlisle are my adoptive parents and I don't have any siblings. I had a few homeboys back in Chicago, but most of the time I'm all booked up with the ladies."

I nodded understandingly. For some reason, Edward's player like qualities didn't bother me as much as they had initially. It was almost as if I was already accustomed to it just after a few days. Everyone had their quirks—although most of them didn't disgust me as much as his did…

Edward pulled into the parking lot, and I saw that Emmett's huge Jeep and Alice's Porsche already there, signifying that we were the last to arrive.

Quickly, I unbuckled my seatbelt and got out of the car. It'd been at least two weeks since I'd last seen Rosalie and I missed her.

Edward walked in with me, while I approached the host.

"I'm here under the name of Mary Alice Brandon."

He nodded and led me to the group's favorite table in the back of the restaurant. Edward followed closely behind.

"Bella!" Rosalie squealed, practically launching out of her seat to hug me.

"Hey skater girl, I'm so glad you finally thought we were worthy of your presence," Emmett joked. "Come here, I missed you." He too, pulled me into his huge embrace, kissing me on the cheek.

"Hey Bella," Alice and Jasper chirped in unison.

Everyone's eyes suddenly turned to Edward, who had the same smooth, 'I'm too good for all this' expression that he always had on his face.

"You must be Edward," Alice greeted warmly, jumping up from her seat to give him a small hug. If he were taken aback by her forwardness he didn't snow it… Maybe he was used to girls being _all_ over him.

Emmett was beside me, looking him up and down suspiciously. At the same time, Alice was inconspicuously raising her eyebrows up and down at me from behind. Rosalie was beside her wearing a devious grin.

"He's hot," she mouthed, and fanned herself. I immediately blushed and they both giggled.

"So," Emmett started still eyeing Edward skeptically. "How did you and Bella meet?"

"Oh, pleased to meet you sir, you must be Bella's father," Edward joked. Everyone but Emmett laughed at this. It was obvious that he was in no mood for fun and games or beating around the bush.

Noticing this, Edward immediately stopped laughing and clamped his mouth shut.

"I've heard of you," Emmett said.

"Really? You just don't seem to be the type that follows figure skating," Edward replied, fascinated.

"No, not by the figure skating tabloids," Emmett scoffed. "There's been a lot of buzz going about you at the club I work at. Apparently you're popular with the ladies."

"Loosen up man, I just—"

"You better not play any of your games with Bella here," Emmett hissed.

I patted Emmett's arm reassuringly. "Edward knows that our relationship is strictly professional," I pleaded, tactfully leaving out how he'd hit on me when we first met.

"Alright," he said, still uneasy. Rosalie dragged him back to his seat so that he wouldn't say anything more—which I was extremely grateful for.

"Sorry Edward, Emmett can overreact sometimes," I apologized. I knew that he had a good reason to his overreaction though—Edward _did_ have a pretty sketchy background.

"It's not overreaction when it's necessary," Emmett muttered. I shot him a glare, silently telling him to shut the hell up.

"Well, I'm so glad we could all make it," Alice said cheerfully, breaking the awkward silence.

Everyone mumbled something in agreement, looking down at their menus as if they were extremely interesting.

The rest of the evening was uneventful. Everyone tried to make small talk, which I knew was for the sake of Edward. If they had acted like their normal selves they probably would have scared the poor guy off.

Edward was as you would have thought, turned out to be extremely charismatic. I knew everyone was enjoying his company. He talked to Alice about having her design some of his practice shirts and pants—which made her day. Jasper, seeing Alice happy immediately took a liking in Edward too.

He knew a lot about cars too, which intrigued Rosalie. They got into a really animated conversation about the difference between Performance Tires and _High_ Performance Tires.

Finally, after Edward courteously insisted to pay the bill everyone stood to put their jackets back on.

"It was great meeting you, Edward," Alice said sincerely.

"Yeah," Rosalie and Jasper echoed.

Emmett gave him a slight nod, but didn't say anything. I could tell that he was slowly warming up to him though.

Edward, seemingly unfazed by Emmett also said something about having a great time.

We left the restaurant together and all went our separate directions in the parking lot to our cars.

"That went pretty well, if I do say so myself," Edward said thoughtfully.

I nodded in agreement. "I'm just relieved that you didn't try to seduce Rosalie or Alice. That would've been a real nice icebreaker."

He gave me an annoyed look. "Bella, you seriously have to give me a little more credit. I'm not _that_ stupid… But I do have to say that blondie _was _smokin'."

"For heaven sakes, Edward, she's freakin' _married_."

"Makes it all the more fun," he grinned.

I sincerely hope he was joking.

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry this got out a day later than I planned..... It's a few hundred words longer though :)

+Don't worry; the juicy stuff is coming up.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	8. Let Me Hate You

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

+Sorry for the delay yall, this one was ready to come out yesterday, but i didn't have a chance to upload it... hence the lateness.

_

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_

Chapter 8: Let Me Hate You

**Bella:**

The next morning after dinner, I was at the rink at five thirty to open up. Since I was officially one of the rink staff members, the manager had given me a key to unlock the doors in the morning.

Sometimes, the staff from the night before had forgotten to lock up, so some homeless sometimes snuck in for the night. The first time I had seen a man sitting alone against the wall and smoking a cigarette it had freaked me out.

Luckily, he seemed to mind his own business, just sitting there, as if he were oblivious to the world around him. He never bothered me though, so in return I never bothered him either.

Lately the night employees seemed to be doing a better job of locking up though, so I rarely saw any uninvited guests lying around the lobby.

I was about to leave to resurface the ice, when the door creaked open and a slightly dreary eyed Edward trudged in. He did look a little better than when he came in yesterday though. Yesterday morning he resembled a horror show.

"Hey," I called out.

Forcefully, he opened his right eye and gave a slight wave. "Man, I'm exhausted."

Considering how tired he looked, it made me wonder how he had managed to dress, let alone drive over here.

"I'll be right back; I gotta go clean the ice. By the time I get back you better be awake," I warned. Since we'd spent all day yesterday picking out music and not practicing, Tatiana had a really busy training day planned out for me and Edward.

"Whoa, can I come?" his eyes shot open, and all of a sudden he seemed very much alert.

"There's only one seat."

"You can sit on my lap while you drive," he offered brightly.

I scoffed. That douche bag was always trying to feel me up. Luckily, I knew how guys like him played their games. After dinner yesterday, Emmett had called to warn me of all the different tactics guys 'tried' on girls. He talked for practically two hours straight, advising me on all the tricks in the book that he had used to seduce Rosalie. Some were more successful than others.

* * *

**The Ultimate Guide for Girls on All the Tricks Guys Try That They Should Not Fall For:** _(by Emmett Swan)_

Pick Up Lines _(Emmett's Commentary: The last one worked on Rosie, but don't let it trick you) _

Examples:

'Just call me milk; I do your body good.'

'I may not be Fred Flinstone but I can make your Bed Rock.'

'Do you work for UPS? I could have sworn I saw you checking out my package.'

Dress Style _(Emmett Commentary: Don't let a well dressed man fool you. If you think he dresses good, he probably begged his sister, cousin, or ex girlfriend to dress him.) _

It was funny because on his and Rose's first date, I'd helped Emmett choose his outfit.

Anything That Requires Touching: _(Emmett's Commentary: We guys can be sneaky. We'll try just about anything to have any physical contact with a girl, so watch out. You may think something is purely innocent—when it's really not.)_

_

* * *

_

The list went on and on, each piece of advice getting more and more ridiculous than before. I didn't know that guys' minds were so complex.

"Nice try, champ, but sucks for you, because you're not getting any contact with my ass," I smirked.

He looked at me with a dazed expression. "Emmett warned me," I explained.

"Aw hell, this is why I don't like babes with older brothers," he huffed.

I couldn't help but laugh at his adorable pout. No wonder he almost always got his way with everyone.

"Please?" he pouted. "Please all I wanted was to be in the driver's seat of the Zamboni. I _promise_, no I _swear_ that I won't attempt anything."

Trick number fourteen in Emmett's book: Do not fall for the innocent, 'all I wanted was…' act. (_Emmett's Commentary: Trust me, that's not 'all he wanted'.) _

It was easier said than done though; Edward looked so lovable with his bed head and sad puppy dog eyes. Instinctively, I bit my lip to keep from giving in.

I sighed, surrendering to him. "Alright, but you better keep your word for it or else I'll kick your scrawny little ass." At my threat, he just laughed—obviously he wasn't scared of little ol' me. "Better yet, I'll tell Emmett and have him do it for me."

He continued laughing—as if he wasn't scared of Emmett, but I could hear a nervous edge behind it. Although Edward was muscular, he was also lean. Emmett was just huge _and_ buff, not a good combination to mess with.

"I'll be on my best behavior," he retorted sarcastically.

I led him into the door where the Zamboni slept and pushed a few buttons to roll up the garage door.

Like an overly excited little boy, Edward hopped into the driver's seat in one swift motion. I was impressed. Normally, I had to use a stool or a few phonebooks to elevate me up there. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised though since he towered me at 6'2" while I stood at 5'4". It was a good nine inch difference.

"Hop on," Edward said, patting his lap.

Tentatively, I took out the stool behind me so that I could step up. If I wasn't imagining things, I swear I heard him stifle a chuckle and mutter something about my height.

Unfortunately, right before I sat down, my foot slipped and I completely collapsed onto his lap.

"Oof," he grunted.

"Sorry!" I mumbled, trying to adjust myself. The space was small so it was hard to wiggle out of the twisted position I was in.

"Bella, baby, please, not there," he squeaked hoarsely.

I felt my face grow hot as my blush went up a few degrees. It really did make me wonder how guys could ride bikes with that _thing_ between their legs.

Finally after what seemed to be a century I was sitting upright in his lap.

"Sorry about that," I apologized again; my face was finally starting to regain its normal, not so tomato like color.

He snickered. "If I knew any better I would have thought you did it on purpose."

My eyes grew wide, as I took in what I had just heard. The retard had thought I'd felt him up _there_ on purpose! Bullshit. God, he was conceited beyond words.

I turned the key, pulled a few select levers, and the engine roared to life.

I also felt Edward's arms snake around my waist.

"What. Are. You. Doing?" I gritted my teeth.

"I don't want you to fall off," he answered innocently.

"Get your hands off me," I commanded menacingly.

"Fine," he complied, and released me from his tight grip. The moment he let go I squeaked and almost fell of his lap. Thankfully, he had cat like reflexes and quickly secured me back into his arms. "Told you so."

I scowled, but didn't say anything this time. To tell the truth, it did feel a little more secure with his arms around me, almost as if they were a seatbelt. Plus, I couldn't risk any injuries falling off a Zamboni. I'd heard too many stories of girls who had to give up their dreams due to long term injuries.

I backed up out of the garage and rolled onto the ice. I steered the machine around the edge of the arena, cut through the center, and made another small circle. Half way through the ride, I felt Edward lean back against the seat and when I looked at him, his eyes were closed.

He remained like this for the rest of the ride. I stole a glance at him and he looked so peaceful and angelic that I didn't really have the heart to wake him when I parked back into the garage.

I tried to wiggle out of his grasp so that I could get off, but his grip just tightened. I heard a light snore come from his throat.

"Edward, can you let go?" I asked softly.

He stirred and his eyes fluttered open one at a time.

"What?" he yawned. I looked down at his hands and he immediately released me from his arms so that I could hop off.

"Whoa, that was great. I've never seen the rink from that perspective," he grinned.

"The thrill wears off," I sniffed, but I was secretly pleased that he enjoyed it.

"You're going to have to teach me sometime."

"Someday," I replied. "We should go lace up; Tatiana's expecting us on the ice any minute now."

He nodded wordlessly in agreement. When we got back in the lobby Tatiana was sitting with her legs crossed on one of the benches.

"It six o three. You guys late and haven't even tied skates on."

"I'm sorry Tatiana, I was cleaning the ice and just lost track time," I informed her apologetically.

"No, it wasn't Bella's fault. I kept her up by asking her if I could tag along while she worked," Edward cleared his throat.

I stared at him in awe. Edward's multiple personalities were starting to give me whiplash. How could someone be so sweet and lovable at one moment but a complete asshole the next?

I thought to back when I'd just had an emotional breakdown when he compared me to his ex partner, Tanya. Just thinking about made we want to puke out of frustration. I could totally picture her in my head—blonde hair, breasts to die for, milk shake body; I bet she had it all.

I bet Edward wished he never moved here so that he could stay with her. I, myself, wished Edward wouldn't wish that. How could we create the chemistry when he was longing for someone else? I wondered if he pretended I was Tanya during practices to make it more endurable for him. I wondered—

Tatiana adjusted her glasses. "I let this time pass. Both of you! Do not have happen again."

"Yes Tatiana," I mumbled.

"Of course," Edward echoed.

When she was out of earshot, Edward spoke his true feelings.

"God, that woman is so uptight sometimes. She's worse than my mother," he threw his hands up. "We were just having some fun."

I didn't say anything in agreement or disagreement.

Edward was in a sense, right, but I knew Tatiana meant well. I'd started training with from a very young age, and she knew my almost unhealthy obsession for the top podium at the Olympics. If I ever complained about how something was 'too hard' or her rules were 'too strict', she'd remind me of all the sacrifices I'd have to make if I wanted to be the best. There was no time for 'fun' when it came to the competitive aspect of skating.

That's why skating is such a beautiful, yet ugly sport. The sad truth in the real word is that we can't all be winners like we were in Pee Wee baseball.

I finished tying the bow on my skate and stood, bending my knees to make sure they were tight enough. Edward was already standing by the door, waiting for me. At that moment Tatiana emerged out of the coaches' room.

"Let's go, already ten minutes late," she complained irritably.

I stroked around the ice by myself to warm up. I could feel Edward's presence following close behind me, and I quickly sped up so that he wouldn't pass me. He was incredibly fast though, probably faster than all my old partners put together—so he effortlessly breezed pass me.

"Faster Isabella! Edward just pass you! Pretty soon he lap you!" Tatiana hollered. I saw a hint of amusement on Edward's face.

"Edward! You going fast but you skating look like you are hockey player! Arms up! Chin up! Chest up! Better form! Fingers!" Tatiana instructed. Edward's prideful smile was immediately wiped off his face.

I was getting warm, so I unzipped my warm up pants and out flowed the simple skating skirt lined with rhinestones that Alice designed for me. I saw Edward eyeing my now practically bare legs. His momentary loss of concentration gave me the opportunity to sprint ahead of him, leaving him behind in the dust.

"Edward! Concentrate! Girl is beating you!" Tatiana shrieked, which snapped him out of his ogling.

Finally after fifteen laps in under two minutes we both stopped to catch our breath. I was already warm and Edward had a thin sheen of sweat on his forehead.

It was refreshing to not have to skate by myself. The peer pressure always drove the competitive spirit out of me—making me work harder, faster, and stronger.

"Good. Today we start work on throws **(1)**," Tatiana declared.

I gulped; it was always nerve wracking to be thrown into the air by someone you barely knew. Since both partners were still unaccustomed to each other's jump timings, it normally resulted in the female (who was thrown) crashing hard and receiving a dark black bruise the next day.

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Could that be considered a cliffhanger? I decided to end it there because I want the next part where they attempt the throws to be in Edward's point of view and I don't really like changing point of views in the middle of chapters. Stay tuned to see what happens…

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	9. Here We Go

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**I found the youtube version of the piece, LOVE STORY that Bella and Edward will be skating to (no. it's not taylor swift for the millionth time) and i put it on my profile so PLEASE CHECK IT OUT and tell me what you think! **

* * *

_Chapter 9: Here We Go_

**Edward:**

"Good. Today we start work on throws," Tatiana declared.

I saw Bella suck in a strangled breath and she started to pale… I wasn't sure that was possible though—since she was already naturally white skinned. I noticed her start to nibble on her soft looking bottle lip, something that she seemed to do out of habit when she was anxious.

God, her lush bottom lip… Gah. It seemed like Bella always unconsciously attracted me in the strangest ways.

I skated up beside her and took her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Thank God I'm not a girl, or else I'd have to be thrown into the air instead of the one throwing. If I _were_ a girl I probably would have never taken up pair skating, or I would've quit before I even started.

Back in Chicago it always amazed me how Tanya took fall after fall after fall. Not that she did it without complaining though, damn, the worst were the days when she yapped about how I had it easy, only doing the throwing. Let me tell you, Tanya wasn't the lightest thing around—she was thin, but also tall, like a model at 5'8" which made her slightly heavier.

I had always envied the other guys that only had to lift up the ninety pound pixies that were Bella's friend, Alice's size—possibly even smaller. Tanya's had sexy curvy hips, and abundant breasts, which was hot, but not exactly ideal for the lifting and throwing.

Here in front of me was a petite brunette, with all the curves in the right places, and a perfect little pair skating body. From the moment I met her I knew I'd lucked out.

"Which jump would you prefer to attempt?" I asked quietly.

Skaters always had a 'favorite jump' more or less. I remembered how Tanya's favorite was the throw triple salchow. Wonder what Bella's was.

"Throw triple loop," she managed to squeak out. It really made me pity her. I couldn't believe that this was the fifth time she had to go through the painful 'get to know each other' process that newly acquainted partners always went through.

I took her hand and we stroked around the rink together, gaining speed. The emptiness of the arena made the early wake up call _almost_ worth it.

"Ready?" I whispered, as she turned backward alongside me.

She gave a slight nod.

We were now both gliding backwards and I reached for her waist with my hands, holding the thin circumference tightly. Her feet were starting to line up in the loop take off position and I felt her body start to turn, signifying that she was ready for take off.

I threw her into the chilly rink air, pleased to find that she was light as a feather. Just as I had suspected.

Unfortunately, I must have miscalculated the timing, because my hand slipped right before she flew out of my arms—resulting in her not getting the total amount of height required.

I was too used to throwing Tanya, since she was my first and only partner since the age of twelve. Since Bella's body proportions were totally different than Tanya's I'd let her go too early.

Throwing an unfamiliar girl was like washing your hair after a cutting your hair short. It always felt weird because your hands would run over the hair that had been cut off to find that it wasn't there anymore.

The moment my hand slipped too early, my veins turned to ice. At the same moment, I knew she felt the off-timing and a panicked expression crossed her face. She knew that she wasn't going to make it.

I have to give it to her, she tried her best to save herself by trying to correct her position in mid air, but the jump happened so fast that she didn't have a chance to recover. If you bat an eye you would have missed the entire move.

The lack of height led to under rotation and she tumbled down to the hard ice, landing on her hip.

"Aw fuck," I mumbled under my breath.

I rushed over to her and offered my hand to help her get up.

"You alright? That was a pretty hard spill."

She grumbled something in response and stood without the aid of the hand I offered. Hastily, I dropped my arm back to my side.

"I'm fine," she winced, rubbing her battered hip with her hand.

Tatiana scrutinized her condition dismissively. "No blood. Check. No broken bones. Check. No throw up. Check. You okay, Isabella. Again until perfect!" she hollered from the other end of the rink.

I looked at Tatiana as if she were a crazy woman. Come to think of it she _was_ a crazy woman.

Bella had just taken the hardest fall I'd ever seen _anyone_ take in my life—and trust me, after more than a decade in the skating business, I've seen it all. Even Tanya had never fallen so hard. It probably hurt like hell.

To make matters worse, she was so tiny and fragile looking. At least Tanya had a little fat on her, making it a little less painful. Bella seemed to be made of skin and bones—there was nothing there to absorb her crashes.

Her lower lip was trembling, probably from the pain, but she didn't utter a single complaint. If it were me I'd probably be swearing my ass off.

"Hey are you sure you're okay?" I asked tentatively.

"I'm fine," she replied shakily. I knew she was biting her bottom lip to keep from crying. Yet she still didn't give in and suffered in silence.

Quickly, she took my hand and starting pulling on it, signaling that she wanted to try again. Tatiana tapped her foot impatiently.

I glanced back at Bella, not believing what was happening before my eyes. Just a second ago she'd took a nasty spill and she was _already_ ready to try again?

If it were Tanya, she would have been bawling her eyes out, and I'd be helping her limp over to a sitting area. Then I'd have to go fetch a bag of ice for her and be replacing it with a fresh pack every fifteen minutes. Sometimes whenever she snapped at me for more ice, I'd want to snap at her to just sit on the damn ice rink, but of course never did.

"I think you should sit, that was…" I trailed off when she shot me a death glare.

So instead, I ended up giving in and skating around the length of the arena to gain speed again. There was a slight hobble in her strokes, but she was amazingly steady considering.

Carefully I turned backwards and she once again, prepared for take off. This time, I was alert, and determined to not mess up.

I grabbed her waist and shot her into the air. Unfortunately, it was a little too late this time, and she fell again… Thankfully it wasn't quite as hard as the last time. She got up so quickly that if I just turned away for one second I never would have thought that her ass had even made contact with the ice.

Without a word, she skated back over to me and grabbed my hand again. A fierce look was stuck to her face, telling me that even if it killed her, she was going to land the throw. Keep in mind that I was speaking quite literally.

Third time was the charm. She landed a little forward, but managed to scratch out the landing.

"Better!" Tatiana called. Bella beamed triumphantly at the coach's compliment.

"Good, little more work and you too become effortless! Bella will fly like bird!" Tatiana exclaimed.

"I see you guys tomorrow for more on ice lesson. Bella, today you show Edward schedule for off ice training. Good work today," Tatiana ordered. Bella nodded obediently in response.

Once Tatiana was out of her line of eyesight, Bella slumped over and caressed her hip gently. "Ugh," she cringed as she hobbled off the ice. I hurried over to help her. This time, she gladly took my hand.

"Thanks," she muttered.

"Sorry, it was entirely my fault. My hand slipped and—"

"It's nobody's fault. We're on ice and balancing on thin metal blades. It's bound to happen sometime," Bella said pointedly.

I was about to protest back and say it was, but something in her withering stare told me not to say anything more on the subject.

"Here." She handed me a blank piece of paper with a bunch of words on it.

"Haha, no thanks… I didn't know that reading was part of the job," I said lazily, pushing the paper away. They were probably just some shitty article on why off ice conditioning was good for you.

It was the truth, I hated reading. It was borderline hell to me. The only reason I made it through twelve grades of school was because after middle school, I started seducing all the nerdy girls into doing the reading and work for me. Worked like a charm.

"No fool, it's the off ice training schedule."

"Oh." I took the laminated sheet from her and briefly scanned over it.

AM:

_5:15-5:45—Warm Up_

_9:30-10:30—Strength Training_ (Only Wed/Fri)

PM:

_2:30-3:30—Ballet_

_4:00-4:45—Pilates_

_7:00-7:45—Jazz_ (Only Tues/Thurs)

I gaped at the scrap of paper. 5:15? I thought that being at the rink by six was bad, and now I have to get there forty five minutes earlier than that? Forty five minutes of lost sleep. What the hell? Is everyone around here psycho?

The second thing I noticed was the ballet. Guys like me do not do ballet. Ballet is the gayest thing a guy could ever do.

"Fucking Ballet? Tutus?" I gawked.

"You won't have to wear a tutu… It helps your grace, core, balance, flexibility, and turn out," Bella explained. "The teacher is Tatiana's twin sister, Dominica. You wouldn't believe the similarities between them."

I thought that one Tatiana on this planet was enough, but two? I felt the headache I'd gotten from the hangover yesterday start to make its reappearance.

"What the hell is pie-lat-tez?" I asked, sounding the word out.

"Pilates," Bella corrected, "Is a great work out. The controlled breathing gets out all the bad strains in your body. It really is my secret weapon to staying like this," she gestured to her slim figure.

God, if Pilates _really _did give girls a figure like Bella's, I'd personally pay and sign up classes for all the women in the world in a blink of an eye.

I think she expected me to bitch about taking jazz too, but that part wasn't all that big of a deal to me. I'd taken jazz classes back in Chicago with Tanya, and boy, did she bounce during all the dance routines. Her breasts were always held in a low cut shirt, and she never wore a bra. They just went up and down… and up and down… and up and down some more.

"Edward? Edward? Hello?" Bella's voice came from a distance. I cleared my thoughts from the bouncing memories.

"What?" I blurted, snapping out of it.

"I was just saying," she said, annoyed, "That this schedule won't start for two more days, and it's for Monday to Friday. Thank God we have breaks on weekends to recover."

I nodded, distractedly. I wonder what Bella would wear to jazz class. Would she wear a low shirt to it—nah, I doubt it, she was always playing it conservative with outfits. I pondered if she would wear a bra or not, I certainly hoped the answer was no.

"Edward?" Bella huffed. "You keep spacing out," she waved her hand in front of my face. I knew she was there, but I didn't give a shit because I was too busy thinking.

After a few more seconds I heard a final huff and footsteps signaling that she'd left. Sure enough when I returned out of my fantasies, Bella and her skate bag were no where to be seen. I looked outside at the parking lot and her truck was gone too. Huh, she must have gone home already.

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

If you're sick of douche bag Edward clap your hands. Sorry folks, he's gonna be around on/off for a few more… Hang in there!

_Again... If you didn't notice it at the top:_

**I found the youtube version of the piece, LOVE STORY that Bella and Edward will be skating to (no. it's not taylor swift for the millionth time) and i put it on my profile so PLEASE CHECK IT OUT and tell me what you think! **

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	10. The Note

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

(BTW: WOOOT! We're in the double digit chapters!)

* * *

_Chapter 10: The Note_

**Bella:**

"Edward?" I waved my hand in front of his face to snap him out of the strange daze he was in. For some reason a glistening drop of drool was hanging off the side of his mouth.

"You keep spacing out," I said, stating the obvious. No reply—and that dribble of drool was still hanging there. It felt like I was talking to a brick wall.

I exhaled noisily, hoping to get his attention but he still didn't snap out of it. The drool was starting to bother me, so with one final huff, I grabbed my skate back and turned to exit the ice rink. Huh, I couldn't help but wonder how long he would remain just sitting there.

I also couldn't help but wonder if he spaced out often. That wouldn't be good for our skating. What if we were in the middle of our routine and he suddenly just got warped back into his own little world, causing him to lose his concentration… Even worse, what if he forgot the steps?

Arg, I _really_ regret not taking up singles skating now. I'm more of an independent person, and hated relying on others to get things done. In pairs skating I had no choice. Trust had always been an issue for me.

I turned the key in, and my truck rattled noisily to life. I swear you could hear the engine all the way down the block. I'd had this car since I was sixteen when Charlie gave it to me. Since I spent all my paychecks on skating, I never saved up enough for a newer, quieter one. A few years ago, I had repainted it myself, but it had already turned dull and was starting to peel off. I had more things to worry about than a car that looked like it was at least a half a century old.

When I reached the parking lot in front of my building my eyes darted anxiously around for any semi threatening looking people. Seeing none, I ran out of my car and up to my apartment door, my heart beating fast.

You would think that after living two years in this craphole, I'd be less freaked out, but it never wore off.

As I got closer there was a bright orange sticky note stuck to the door. The few belongings and clothes I had were scattered about the front door, looking like someone had just thrown them into a pile. Had someone snuck in? I didn't know if my heart could beat any faster, but somehow it did.

I tried to think positively. Maybe Alice or Emmett came by to do some house cleaning and dropped off a note.

"_Miss __Isabella Swan, in response to your inability to keep up with your payments, you have been evicted."_ It read.

My heart sank. I knew that it shouldn't have been surprised though. I hadn't paid the bills and they'd kicked me out. It was easy as 1, 2, 3.

I tried to open the door with my rusted key, but they'd already changed the lock combination.

"SHIT! C'MON OPEN THE HELL UP!" I yelled. Of course nobody heard me except the crows perching on the roof. I had no money and was alone.

I scooped up my invaluable possessions—which mainly consisted of clothes Alice had bought for me—and dumped them into the trunk of my truck.

Hurrying into the front seat I slipped in and locked the doors reflexively. I closed my eyes. I had no money and no place to go.

I could ask to Alice and Jasper if I could crash with them for a while, but they were already cramped as it was in their small one bedroom apartment.

Emmett and Rosalie were in a similar predicament as Alice and Jazz and I hated to burden them with an extra mouth to feed. They were both were already working two jobs so that they could start their life together well off.

Moving back in with Charlie wasn't a choice. When I was eighteen he had promptly kicked me out because he didn't want anything to do with my expensive skating career. He had told me that if I wanted to skate I would have to fair on my own. I haven't seen him since.

It was times like these when I wished my mother was still alive to comfort me. She had passed away three years ago to breast cancer. It was long, hard, battle, but in the end, I knew she'd ended up in a better place.

I remember how she had adored every aspect of my figure skating. She loved the dresses, glitz, and glamour, and would always be waiting on the sidelines for me with a bottle of water and enthusiastic praises to motivate me. Renee was always there to comfort me on the bad days when Tatiana yelled at me or I'd taken a hard spill that made my butt feel like it was going to fall off. She was always there for days like today.

Her death was partially the reason why I continued skating even after all the failures. I wanted to do something that she and I both loved—even if she was in heaven and I was on earth, it made me feel closer to her in somehow. Winning the gold medal wasn't only for me, but for her too.

Finally, I decided that my only choice left was to the place that was practically my second home, Forks Arena.

I pulled back into the parking lot, which was a lot more crowded than it had been at five thirty AM. Victoria's red bug was parked over in the corner, and as childish as it was, I parked my truck in the farthest spot away.

I entered through the ice rink doors, shutting them as quietly as I could. Victoria was sitting on one of the benches, listening to her iPod.

She looked up at me from the screen and grimaced. "What are you doing here? It's ten. James and I have the ice reserved just for us until twelve."

"I'm not skating," I said, looking down at my shoes.

"If you're here to workout in the gym upstairs, we rented that out for the next hour. You should just go home."

Home. Something I had yesterday, but didn't anymore.

"I'll just be staying in the lobby. I won't bother you," I half begged.

"Fine, you can stay in this shit lobby. If you bother James or me in any way we're kicking your fat ass out." She whipped her hair around and started towards the stairs, probably to tell James of the arrangement.

I set down my tote bag and laid down on one of the benches in the corner. My back groaned against the hard wood, but beggars can't be choosers. My eyes ran across the ceiling, seemingly memorizing every dent or crack visible. I don't know how many minutes or maybe hours I passed while I was just staring.

I felt people passing by and whispering to each other when they saw me, but paid no attention.

My mind was on such overload that I couldn't even think of a proper solution to homeless status.

"Are you dead?" Victoria's voice came out of no where.

I lifted my head up and rubbed my eyes. I felt hideous and I bet I looked worse.

"No."

"Yeah, uh whatever. James and I are done. So you can do your thing," she said, nodding her head towards the rink. "By the way, the trash can by the bathroom is practically overflowing—you may want to, you know, take it out because you work here."

"Just leave," I sighed.

I plopped my head back onto the bench and closed my eyes. It was finally quiet; the only sound was the humming of the heater going on and off…

--

I woke up to the sound of little kids screaming and the sound of metal clashing together— the classic soundtrack of a Forks Arena public skating session.

There were brothers and sisters fighting over the metal walkers, parents fawning over their precious children that had fallen, and little kids begging their moms for spare change so that they could play the 'Candy Crane' machine in the arcade.

I yawned and looked at the clock. It was 3:45. Shit. I missed practice with Edward that was schedule at one.

Tatiana was going to have a cow. No she was probably going to have the whole barn. Aw crap.

I could just imagine what happened when the clock struck one and I was no where to be found.

"_Where is Miss Isabella?" Tatiana would ask a smirking Edward as she emerged out of the coach's room._

"_I don't know where she is!" Edward would say in that innocent little boy voice. "She's supposed to be here by now. We scheduled one o'clock. I hope she's not hurt or anything!" _

"_Edward you so caring sweet gentleman. More young men be like you give us better world." Tatiana would reply. _Gag me. If all the men in the world were like Edward no one would be married.

Little did they know that technically, I _was_ at the rink—just sleeping on the bench in the corner.

I thought about the possibilities. I could probably just live at the rink. I'd just work the night and morning shifts… That way I'd be the one closing up and the one opening. The bench wasn't too stiff, I could add a mattress or something to it and it wouldn't be so bad.

As if right on cue, my phone jingled, signaling an incoming text message. I looked at the number and it was unknown.

**Where were you earlier? **

It had to be Edward. But how did he get my number? I decided to ignore his question to ask my own.

_How did you get my number?_

A second later my phone dinged again.

**I have my sources. Where were you earlier?**

Sources? That just sounded borderline stalker-esque.

I decided that it would be too hard to explain what happened over IMing, so I decided to call him instead.

"Where were you?" Edward's voice demanded. No 'hello' or 'how are yous'.

"I was at the rink," I sighed, it was so complex, and I really didn't want to tell _him_ about my eviction. It was too embarrassing. There was no way in hell that he would understand. Damn it, he was a filthy rich bastard that probably never had a financial woe in his life.

"No you weren't. I showed up and you didn't," Edward said firmly, his tone seeping with annoyance.

"I got caught up in other things," I hesitated.

"Where were you? I deserve to be answered. I listened to an hour of non stop complaining from Tatiana."

I sighed in defeat; there was no way out of answering the question besides telling him the entire truth. Plus, I kind of felt bad that he received the end of Tatiana's wrath because of me. I knew that that shit wasn't pretty.

"I was sleeping."

"You know how much I would have liked to sleep all afternoon too? Shit, I'm tired. But instead I _had_ to show up at fucking practice to find that you fucking didn't show up. Then I checked my phone and there wasn't any explanation about why you weren't there—"

"I got evicted," I said plainly.

He stopped mid-rant about how his hair isn't perfectly tousled when he gets a good night's sleep. "What?" he asked dumbly.

"I got evicted," I repeated. "Forgot to pay my bills last month and I'm broke since I invested all my earnings into skating."

"Oh."

The line was silent for a few moments. I was beginning to wonder if he was still on the other side.

"So where are you staying?" he asked. It was as if all the anger from my no show had been thrown out the window. Was it just me, or did I hear a little hint of concern laced underneath his tone?

"I told you, I was at the rink, sleeping."

"Well where are you going to stay overnight?" he asked.

I paused, because truthfully _I_ didn't even know where I was going to stay overnight. I didn't even have enough money to rent a cheap motel room.

"I really can't talk to you about this on the phone. I'll see you back at Starbucks in ten," I sighed.

I heard the engine of his car purring in the background. He was already heading over there. Great, I had ten minutes to think of a lie to tell Edward where I was staying.

I could tell him I was going to stay with my mother; he didn't know that Renee had passed. Yes, that was perfect; in the mean time I'd just work extra hours at the rink, and be the one opening and closing the place. Nobody would know that I was sleeping there overnight between my morning and night shift. It would be perfect.

Well, it'd be perfect until someone found out. I was smart enough to know that that would be inevitable. In the meantime, I'd save up my earnings from my rink work to find a new place. Yes, with my extra work hours, hence the increased wages I could probably find a place in approximately two months.

It would be as if I had never been evicted in the first place.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Not my best work, but hopefully you enjoyed it.

BTW, THANK YOU for ALL the reviews! We surpassed the 100 mark! WOW!

Let's try to repeat that kay?

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	11. Tell Me More

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 11: Tell Me More_

**Edward:**

"I really can't talk to you about this on the phone. I'll see you back at Starbucks in ten," Bella said dejectedly.

Quickly, I flipped my cell phone closed and slipped into my Volvo. It had just arrived a few hours earlier, after I got home from Bella's 'no-show' practice. Luckily it was in pretty good shape, if it hadn't been I don't know how I would have reacted since I was already having a pretty shitty day. Sure, my baby was in need of a good wash, but thankfully there wasn't a single dent or scratch visible on it.

Bella. When I thought about her I wasn't sure if I should have been mad or sympathetic.

When she didn't show up at practice, I was fuming. Smoke was practically steaming out of my ears and nostrils and if I recall correctly, I was seeing red. Tatiana didn't help by lecturing me about the importance of being punctual for an hour straight and how she didn't want Bella's behavior to be repeated on me. It definitely wasn't the way I wanted to spend a lovely Thursday afternoon.

But then again, she _had_ been evicted. I knew little about Bella's background, but the one thing I _did_ know was that she was definitely not anywhere near wealthy.

For the past few days of knowing her, I'd watched her work her tight little ass off for the minimum wage she got for driving the Zamboni and hosting the birthday parties for bratty little kids.

I watched the kids spill their ice cream all over her, kick her in the thigh with their rental skates, and scream about how they wanted more juice in their cup. Yet she never uttered a single complaint.

When I asked her about it she just shrugged and said, "I need a job. I'm lucky I even have one."

I also saw the place that she called her 'home' and it was nothing short of a being called a shithole. Seriously, when I opened the door I thought that the hinges were going to break off.

And the area she lived in! I shuddered, recalling what she'd told me about how some thug had tried to break in one time. Just thinking about it sent a chill down my spine. She was so tiny and defenseless; thank God she had that club handy to beat the guy down. Who knows what could have happened that night?

So after pondering about my feelings towards her during the entire drive, I decided that I was somewhere in the middle. I was still angry, but my sympathy for her toned that down a bit.

Still, she probably could have at least gotten my number off any chick that was within a five mile radius and texted me.

I pulled into the parking lot and spotted Bella's rusted truck parked by the sidewalk. She was already here. Good.

I entered the homey coffee shop and it was almost unrecognizable since it was empty compared to the last time I had come. Bella sat at the same table as before, the one in the corner where the lights didn't reach. Her eyes were closed and she was quietly sipping on a cup of ice water.

She put down her drink and her eyes fluttered back open. Any left over anger from earlier in me completely disintegrated the moment I actually looked at her.

For some reason, even though I had seen her just this morning, she looked years older. Her hair didn't seem to have the same amount of shine in it, her eyes were sad and droopy, and the familiar color in her cheeks was just a chalky white. Where was that same witty girl that always had the best comebacks and drove the Zamboni?

I walked over and openly gawked at her condition.

She gave me a withering glare. "I know I look like hell. It's what happens to you when you sleep on a bench."

"I'm sorry about—"I started, but she cut me off.

"I don't want anyone's pity, Edward… Especially not yours," she said harshly. "It's not like you'd understand anyways," I thought I heard her mumble.

I pulled up the chair across from her and sat down.

"I just want to know where you're staying," I said firmly.

She hesitated for a moment. "At my mothers."

I was glad she had someone to take care of her. She was too independent sometimes.

"Oh. _Oh._ Okay. Can you still commute to the rink?" I inquired. I highly doubted it, but maybe she had decided that she didn't want to skate anymore. After all, practically all her debt had come from it.

"No, the commute won't be a problem."

I involuntarily sighed in relief. Although she had her bitchy moments, skating with Bella always kept me on my toes and it never got boring. She never failed to surprise or catch me off my guard, and it made the whole training process a lot less hellish. Her head was always screwed straight, and she never gave a shit about anything that wasn't worth it.

Plus, she was just super hot to look at.

"And if you're wondering, I _was_ at the rink earlier. After I received notice of the _eviction_," she spat the word with such venom, "I headed over there to get some rest. I must have fallen asleep on the bench and lost track of time."

"It's alright."

"Still, I'm sorry you had to endure Tatiana's rage," she gave a dark chuckle.

"Okay then," she started to stand up and slink her jacket back on. "I'd best get going. I still have some arrangements to make. Can we make up the practice tonight at seven? I promise I'll be there this time."

I looked at my watch; it was a quarter to four. "Sure, see you later."

She breezed out the door and I continued sitting there, staring into space. Truth be told, I was worried about her. In less than a twenty four hour period, Bella seemed to have turned into a corpse. If it was possible, she looked even more breakable and delicate than before.

The bell on the door jingled, and in walked a familiar looking petite, dark haired girl. Where had her seen her before?

Was she one of the babes I fucked the other night? No, I'd remember a tight little ass like hers…

The dark haired pixie looked over my way and her eyes lit up. Aw crap, she _must_ have been one of my one night stands. I hate it when I can't remember their names.

"Edward! Hey!" she called out.

Hearing her voice made everything come together in my head. I breathed a sigh of relief; it was Alice, Bella's best friend. Whew, I really wasn't in the mood for an angry ex ranting about how she woke in the morning to an empty bed and my signature break up note.

"Hello Alice. What are you doing here?" I asked smoothly, waving her over to join me. She sat in the chair that Bella had occupied before she left.

"Oh! I always come here right before rush hour when the business-y people come. It's a zoo in here when it's crowded," she chattered.

"I know what you mean. You just missed Bella," I explained.

She shook her head. "I talked to her on my way in." Her voice lowered. "She looked kind of down when she headed out. Did you notice that too or was it just me? I worry about her so much."

"Well, it's understandable since you know… She just got evicted."

Alice's eyes grew round and her hand flew up to her mouth. "She got evicted? What? Since when?"

My eyes widened. Obviously Bella was yet to tell Alice about her eviction.

"Oh um, well, uh, earlier this afternoon," I said uneasily. I wasn't sure if I should have been the one breaking the news to Alice. Bella probably would have liked to do it herself.

"How could she tell _you_ but not _me?_ No offense, but…" Alice sputtered. "I'm her best friend! We tell each other everything! I don't understand why…"

"I bet she had her reasons," I said, trying to soothe a frantic Alice. Plus, I wasn't used to actually talking to a girl so much. Most of the time there was more physical rather than verbal action going on.

She paused to think. "Yes, I guess this is typical Bella. Maybe I shouldn't be so surprised. I mean, she hates asking others for help. Bella has always thought of herself as a burden. I always try to convince her that she's not, but it's useless," Alice continued.

"The poor girl, she's so young and has already gone through so much and fought some many obstacles in her twenty one years. I really hope she had a place to stay, I mean, I wouldn't mind letting her crash with me. Jasper and I are already pretty tightly jammed into our apartment as is, but I guess we could make room for one more person—"

I opened my mouth to explain that Bella was going to stay with her mother, but didn't have a chance because Alice kept going and going. She was like a never ending talking machine.

—"Gah! I just wish Bella would open up sometimes. I know that there is so much hurt in her that needs to be vented. She's just so tightly wound that I feel as if she could break down any day now."

"Oh Edward," her expression was radiating so much sadness and hopelessness that she could have asked me to jump off the empire state building and I probably would have. "Promise me you'll treat Bella right? I know that you have your, uh, history and all, and Bella is just so mentally fragile."

"Of course I wil—"

"Oh thank you! Bella really needs another dependable person in her life besides me, Emmett, Rosalie, and Jasper. She's just been so helpless since her father disowned her after she graduated, and after losing her mother—"

I froze and my ears perked up. It was my turn to interrupt.

"Her mother has passed?" I repeated.

Alice nodded. "It was so tragic. She was such a sweet woman, and Bella really depended on her. They were always really close. Four years ago Renee was diagnosed with breast cancer, and the next year she lost the battle and passed away. Bella must have cried for three months straight. By the third month the tears seemed to come to a sudden halt for no reason. I tried asking Bella what happened, but she just said that the pain was easing with time. Since then, I haven't seen her shed a single tear."

I didn't really pay attention to anything Alice said after she confirmed that Bella's mother wasn't alive. My mind started spinning with all the possibilities. If Bella's mother was dead, then why did she say she was staying with her mother? Maybe she had a stepmother? I sincerely hoped so.

"Does she have a stepmother? Grandmother? Any mother like figure?"

"No, her father never remarried. I don't even think she knows her grandmother, all she has is us," Alice replied remorsefully.

Bella fucking Swan had lied.

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

I know some of yall requested longer chapters again, and I REALLY WISH I could do that, but I try to update within 24 hours, hence the shorter chapters. Therefore, I'd like to ask you guys: Would you rather have longer chapters with less frequent updates OR slightly shorter chapters with more frequent updates?

I have to admit that this chapter IS shorter than normal though... My sincerest apologies to that. This chapter came out in a rush and i wasn't sure if I'd be able to post on time.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	12. Imagine That

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 12: Imagine That_

**Bella:**

I got up from the table and quickly scurried out of Starbucks. I wasn't sure how much longer I could keep up the lies with Edward.

It was a miracle that he even believed my pathetic fib… Normally I'm easy to read like an open book.

Just my luck, on my way out I ran into a bubbly looking Alice. As much as I loved the girl, I wasn't sure if I had enough lying skills to face her. Sometimes I felt as if Alice could see right through me. It was almost as if she analyzed my every movement and could detect untruthfulness laced underneath my words.

"Bella!" she called to me cheerfully. She took a look at my face, which from Edward's reaction must have been pretty bad, and her smile turned upside down to a frown.

"What's wrong?"

Gah. She knew me too well.

"Nothing," I said, almost too cheerfully. "I've just had a busy day," which as true. "My new schedule with Edward has been extremely hectic." None of those were lies.

"Oh. Okay," her eyes narrowed. "Are you sure?"

"Oh yeah… I'm great, but I gotta scram," at that moment I mentally slapped myself. I never said 'scram', and I knew Alice knew it too because her eyes narrowed even further.

"Alright," she said cautiously. "Call me later."

I nodded and ran to my truck. My heart was pounding harder than it had in high school when I made a speech in front of the entire student body; lying to Alice always gave me an adrenaline rush.

From the look on her face, I knew that she wasn't going to let go of her suspicions though.

* * *

**Edward:**

I still couldn't believe that Bella Swan had lied. Lied! I didn't even know she had that kind of blasphemy in her.

_"I'm staying at my mother's."_

Gah! How long did she think that lie would keep up with her? I would have found out about her deceased mother in time anyways.

Still, I couldn't help but feel a little hurt. I knew that we had only known each other for a few days, but did she not think she could trust her figure skating partner with her personal life?

"Bella has no one to stay with," I said blankly.

Alice gave me a curious look that accused: 'How do you know? I'm her best friend. I should know her better.'

I still think that she was a little peeved that Bella came to tell me about the eviction before her. Furthermore, even when Bella had the perfect opportunity to tell her, when they ran into each other she decided not to.

"When I asked her who she would be staying with—which I did thank you very much, I'm not _that_ heartless—she said that she would be staying with her mother. But you just told me that her mother has passed away."

Alice slapped her forehead with her palm. "God, I can't believe that Bella didn't just come to me. I'm warm and inviting aren't I?" she asked, putting on her 'warmest' smile.

"Sure whatever," I rolled my eyes.

"Did she think that Jasper and I would turn her away? Sure, we're a little cramped as is, but Bella and I have been BFFLs since high school! No, she should know that we wouldn't do that…"

"BFFLs?" I raised my brow.

"Best friends for life," Alice replied dismissively as if it were one of the most commonly used words. Why not just say that instead of the abbreviation? Girls; I don't think I'm ever going to understand their inner workings and mechanics. I'm not sure I want to either.

Alice shook her head and exhaled noisily. "I still can't believe that after all these years of friendship Bella still doesn't think she can lean on the group for support. I thought we'd overcome this silliness."

Alice looked at the time on her cell phone and immediately stood. "Whoa, it's already six; Jasper's probably wondering what's keeping me. I gotta go, bye!"

She raced out the door in a blink of an eye.

I still didn't understand why Bella would think she would have to hide something as harmless as where she would be living. Did she think I'd laugh and mock her about how she had no place to stay? I knew I came across as shallow to Bella, but certainly not to that degree, right?

So after pondering about what was going on in Bella's enigmatic mind, I decided to play along with her little act. Maybe even give her a slightly harder time with her plan wouldn't be such a bad idea—it would just be some payback for lying to me.

_No_ one get's away with dishonesty around Edward Cullen.

My cell phone started buzzing with an incoming call. I checked the caller ID and Esme's face popped up on the screen.

"Hey Mom, what's up?" I asked impatiently.

"Edward! I feel like I haven't seen or spoke with you in weeks honey!" Esme's all too familiar voice came from the other end.

"It's only been two days."

She sniffed. "The house is so quiet without you when Carlisle is working at the hospital."

Aw hell, she probably wants me to move back in. That is fucking never going to happen. Finally I'm free from my parents after twenty three years. I mean, Esme and Carlisle are great and all, but it's kind of awkward whenever they find a girl lying naked in bed with me in the morning.

I know it sounds insensitive, especially to my caring foster parents, but I think Esme should seriously consider getting a cat.

"I'll try to visit more often," I lied. Really, I wasn't going to give a shit about it. Esme and Carlisle were the ones who made me move here, and if either one of them didn't like it well too damn bad for them.

"Oh honey, I'd appreciate that so much," Esme gushed. "Well, now that that is settled, I can move onto my next topic, Isabella Swan. It'd be lovely if you could invite her to dinner tomorrow evening."

I cleared my throat. "I'll ask her sometime. She's a very busy woman, so she may not be available right away," _or a few months_, I added silently.

"Oh well will you please invite her? Your father and I are just _dying_ to meet her."

"Of course." Sure. Whatever.

"Fabulous! So have you met any lovely ladies in Forks?" Esme pressed.

I sighed again and involuntarily ran my hand through my hair. "A few," I bit back. Well, there were a few good fucks, but I couldn't seem to find anyone erotic enough. Well, everyone except for Bella, who would probably rather go through hell than hook up with me. She was the one thing I wanted, but she was unreachable.

"Oooh," Esme squealed. "Who? Anyone Carlisle or I might know?"

"No, probably not," I answered truthfully. I don't think Esme knew any professional strippers.

"Oh," she said dejectedly. "Edward, I just really think that you should—"

"Settle down and get into a serious relationship," I interjected. A heavy sigh came from the other end. "I know, I know. If the right woman comes around maybe I will, mom."

"Alright, I guess that's all I can ask."

I smiled into the phone. Yes, these kinds of things weren't in my control. I guess it'd be kind of nice to settle down with a girl I actually liked—it'd save me the trouble of trying to memorize all the names. God, girls get all catty when you don't remember. What do they expect?

Anyways… I've heard that some people are meant to be around the block a lot and never settle down; probably I'm one of them (unfortunately for Esme).

"Well, Carlisle will be home soon, I should start dinner. Maybe you can join us tonight?"

"Count me out, I have practice with Bella," I said; relieved that I had an honest excuse. "Love you."

"Okay, I guess another time will do. Remember to ask Bella about tomorrow and let me know! Love you, Edward." Before she could say anymore I flipped the phone closed, ending the call.

I stood from my seat and saw a brunette barista eyeing me. Looking down at the time on my cell, I saw that I'd been in the store for two hours without ordering anything. Oh well, I'd make it up to_ all_ the baristas later at my place.

Well at least the hot ones.

So I winked at her and she immediately melted into putty—the customary reaction from girls… Why couldn't Bella just do that too? Life's unfair.

* * *

When I reached the arena at six forty five, Bella's truck was already there. Of course it was there, she had no where else to stay obviously.

I smirked, putting my revenge plan in check.

"Bella! I'm so glad that you decided to show up this time," I joked.

She chuckled nervously. Of course she was nervous. Just by looking at her one would know that she wasn't an experienced liar—maybe I'll give her some lessons on fibbing after all this shit… I mean, I _am_ the master.

"Yeah, I'm still really sorry about earlier."

_Of course_, she would still be guilty about bailing on me. Whatever, it didn't feel like as big of a deal now. I don't know how many practices Tanya 'forgot' or called in 'sick' for practice.

Tanya. Huh, I missed her and the bouncy jazz classes… _Especially_ the bouncy jazz classes. Plus I _really_ wanted to skate to Bond.

"How long will be practicing? I have plans for tonight," I said in a bored tone. I really didn't have plans, but I could easily make some… That barista was kind of cute and I guess she'd be a decent lay—plus I owed her for staying in her store for two hours and not buying anything.

"An hour and a half tops, I have to close up tonight so I'll be staying later," Bella said.

Then it hit me. Bella was clever, but no amount of cleverness was enough to get past me. She was going to live _here_. She was going to live at this shit hole that someone dare call an ice rink.

I should have realized this sooner—it was truly right in front of my face. Bella was the one who closed and opened this shit, so she could just sleep here over night without being found out.

Damn, she was good.

But I was better. A new plan hit me. My lips curled into a grin in anticipation.

"Oh, really?" I asked, deciding to give her a hard time.

"Yeah," she nodded vigorously. Damn, it was so obvious if you knew she was lying.

"Okay, well I don't want you to be here alone without company. The plans aren't that important," and really, they weren't important. "I guess I'll just keep you company until you close up at—" I glanced over at the ice rink hours 5AM-10PM—"ten."

Her eyes grew wide and panicked. I fought to hold back a smirk, this was just too funny.

"No, no, please just _no_. You don't have to do that," Bella sputtered quickly.

"Oh it's totally alright; I don't want you to get lonely." So maybe that was a little over done, but I think Bella was too nervous to notice.

"No!" Bella shouted suddenly. I gave her a quizzical look. "I mean… no, I don't get lonely. I have, uh… err… Mr. Zamboni to keep me company."

I swallowed the laughter that was bubbling up my throat. Mr. Zamboni? Please, because that was just _so _believable. If she was going to lie couldn't she do any better than that?

"Really, Bella. Mr. Zamboni?" I couldn't help the scoff that escaped. "Are you picking the Zamboni's company over mine?" I faked hurt.

"No, I just don't—"

I put my hands up and laughed. "Okay Bella, if it's such a big deal to you to have some alone time with 'Mr. Zamboni' I won't stay."

She turned scarlet, but I saw her breathe a sigh of relief. I choked back another laugh. She was definitely a conscious liar.

I finished lacing up my boot and stood by the door to wait for Bella. Her skate tying had been somewhat slowed down with all my sneaky interrogations. Every time I'd ask her a question to mess with her conscious she would just freeze up.

Tatiana emerged out of the coach's room with a cross scowl on her face. "Bella!" she snapped. Damn, someone was in a bad mood. Probably from not getting laid… I sympathize. "No good keep Mr. Cullen waiting."

For once, Tatiana was one hundred percent right. Not in the way she thought she was though. There truly was no need to keep me waiting; Bella knew she was attracted to me. I would just have to wait for her to find out. Unfortunately, patience wasn't my area of expertise.

I couldn't wait to get a taste of what those incredibly full, soft lips could do…

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

By the way, just to clear things up, Edward has NO 'lovey-dovey' feelings for Bella right now. He's just attracted to her cuz she's a SUPER HOT CHICA

I normally don't like to change POVs in the middle of chapters, but in order to make them longer, I may have to start doing that :)

Oh, and by the way, if you thought that giving Bella a hard time with all his questions was Edward's scheme, it wasn't. That's coming up in the next chapter or so... Stay tuned ;)

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	13. Little Voice

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 13: Little Voice_

**Bella:**

"Bella!" Tatiana snapped. "No good keep Mr. Cullen waiting."

I blushed and quickened my pace; it always made me embarrassed when Tatiana had to scold me about lateness. Before Edward came I'd never been late, not once. But in the past days he's been here, my record has been destroyed and I've been late twice!

Edward's questions definitely threw me off track and slowed me down. It was almost uncanny how nervous he had made me. Lying definitely wasn't my greatest quality.

I still couldn't believe that I'd actually told him that the Zamboni, 'Mr. Zamboni', was great company. It was the first thing that popped into my head when he offered to stick around with me until I closed. I mean, seriously, how am I supposed to sleep here if he stays?

Quickly I shot up from the bench and scurried over to Edward who was patiently waiting by the door.

I pushed past him and stepped onto the ice, savoring the smoothness. The rink was empty, as it always was after five o'clock.

Quickly I glided towards the boom box and slipped in the warm up CD I'd made. The beginning piano notes to Vanessa Carlton's 'A Thousand Miles' echoed through the once quiet arena.

"Uh, we're not going to play that girly shit. I made a CD too, and we're listening to mine," Edward declared, pressing the stop button and ejecting my CD from the player. He placed his own CD in and Soulja Boys song, 'Kiss Me Thru The Phone' came on. So typical.

"No. We're listening to _my_ CD." I glided back over and pushed him away from the player, ejecting his CD. If we hadn't been on ice I probably wouldn't have been able to budge him. Luckily, he gently glided to the right.

I placed mine back in and Vanessa's feminine voice filled the rink once more.

Calmly, Edward bumped me with his shoulder, practically sending me flying across the length of the rink. Damn, he was _strong_.

"Fine, I'll play you for it," he declared.

"Race you," we challenged in unison.

"Fine," I said and he echoed it.

"Back and forth—red line to red line— across the length of the rink five times. Whoever finishes first get's to play their choice of music," I affirmed.

"Perfect, this is a test of strength, speed, and stamina. Three things that I can kick your ass at," he stated boldly. "Especially stamina. Believe me, I have good stamina. Ask any girl within five miles of this place. Of course, _you_ wouldn't know anything about stamina."

My jaw dropped at how boldly he had mocked my virginity.

"There are other ways to build endurance besides sex, Edward," I shot back angrily.

"However, I've learned that the other _techniques_ aren't quite as effective," he said smugly.

"We'll see about that," I muttered.

Pah. He thought that since I haven't had sex I have no stamina? Sure, the group's teased me every so often about my non existing sex life, but Edward's comment was surely the most vulgar of them all. I'd show him. I'd kick his scrawny little ass half way around the world.

I could practically feel the fire burning in my eyes, fueling my desire.

"Maybe we shouldn't do this race. I mean, I don't want you to get too tired before practice," Edward suggested uneasily.

I scoffed. "You're just scared that you're gonna get whipped by lil old me."

"No, I just don't want Tatiana to be all pissed off cuz we wasted all our—or rather _your_—energy racing," he hedged.

I tilted my head sideways and frowned at him. He really did a have a point. Tatiana would have a cow if Edward and I didn't put our one hundred ten percent efforts into the practice.

"Fine," I growled. "But this racing business isn't over. We will have this match soon."

"Fine by me," Edward shrugged nonchalantly.

A tiny rumble escaped my chest that must've been a growl. The little sound was so ferocious that it almost scared _me_.

Edward whistled. "Damn, feisty! Do you think you can make that seeeexy noise again?"

He raised his eyebrows up and down with a goofy grin on his face.

My cheeks heated up. "No, I'm annoyed and angry that I'll have to wait before I can whip your ass at strength, speed, and _especially_ stamina."

"Sorry to disappoint you, babe, but that's _never_ gonna happen."

Involuntarily, the growl like noise escaped me again. I blushed again after I realized it came out, and Edward whistled. If I could grow any redder, I did. Before he could say anything though, I shot him daggers that said: Don't you dare say anything or else I'll pummel your balls with my club.

Since he probably wanted to be able to reproduce, he settled for whispering, "Hot damn!"

"Ya know, babe, you're sexy when you're angry," he winked.

I threw my hands up in the air and groaned. As if I needed any of that!

"Edward! Stop… What is the American term? Oh yes, I remember now. Stop hit on Bella!" Tatiana scolded. "American term so strange. 'Hit on'? Why they say that? It no like he actually hitting girl!" she muttered afterwards. I stifled a giggle, it sounded so bizarre when Tatiana spoke any modern lingo. Her Russian accent made it even more outlandish.

Edward raised his palms up and shook his head.

"Enough silliness," Tatiana declared. "I put on _my_ music. Puccini's Tosca so timeless!"

We both groaned simultaneously. Tatiana always put on opera music from the medieval times. She claimed that they were 'timeless'—but really, no one listens to that stuff anymore.

She glared at our lack of enthusiasm. "It better than what you listen now days. Yesterday other girls put on music by girl… What her name? Oh yes, Katy Perry. Shit. That is what it called. It called shit."

I stifled a chuckle. The word 'shit' coming out of Tatiana's mouth sounded so foreign and awkward.

* * *

"Great practice, Edward," I said heartily. Surprisingly, that was a hundred percent honest. Edward _had_ worked hard, throwing me numerous times until we got it right, and I know that I'm not the lightest around. I hope he doesn't wake up with sore arms and think of me tomorrow. "You can go ahead and… leave. I just have to close this place up."

"Are you _sure_ you don't want me to stick around?"

It was so sweet of him to offer. But, I had no choice but to turn it down.

"No!" I said a little too quickly. "I mean I'll be fine."

"I mean, you just have to close down, right? Maybe we could have dinner together… Or catch a movie? You know, have some fun. It's only nine and we could probably catch a later show…"

"I really can't," I sighed, biting my lip. Truth be told, it _did_ sound like it would be like fun as long as Edward stopped thinking with his dick during the few hours.

"Another time," he promised. "Alright, I'll see you in the morning then. Bright and early." For some reason there was a mysterious glint in his eyes that told me he was up to something. I gave him a suspicious look, but the mischievous twinkle had disappeared.

He stepped closer to me, and I unconsciously started holding my breath.

"Good night Isabella. Thanks for the great practice," he whispered, he gazed at me for a moment and kissed me tenderly on the cheek. Though it was only a light touch, I think I may have felt a jolt of electricity zing through my body. Was that normal?

It probably was just a friendly gesture, but nonetheless it made my heart speed and cheeks reheat up.

It made me wonder. Did I react that way because of _him, _Edward? Or was it just the glory of being kissed by a boy? Damn it, I'm twenty one and I'm blowing a tiny kiss on the cheek _way_ out of proportion.

I mean Edward was nice looking… Okay, he was the most attractive guy I'd ever met. But he was a total ass. Gah, I couldn't let myself fall for him. Even if I did give him a chance the whole thing would probably end with disastrous results. It'd end our friendship that was coming along and our skating.

Harboring a skating relationship never worked out right. I'd seen it all. Last year, the Alaskan couple, Kate and David had attempted to harbor a romantic relationship, but after a disagreement between the couple, they ended their romantic _and_ skating partnership.

At times, Edward could be the sweetest (like now), but at others all he did was think with his dick. I remembered how peaceful and maybe even beautiful he looked, resting atop the Zamboni. But then, the way he acted around women was preposterous. I shuddered at the thought that he had slept with Victoria and probably more than half the population of women in Forks.

It'd already been a miracle that we worked well on the ice together. I didn't want to push my luck by pursuing something more intimate.

No, I couldn't take that kind of risk on Edward if I wanted to win the Olympics. If we broke up I'd be toast.

"Have a nice night," I managed to whisper.

He nodded, picked up his skate bag, and strolled easily out the door.

Gah. None of my previous partners had _ever_ made me feel this way. I couldn't figure out if it was good or bad.

Quickly I ran over to the window and saw his car pulling out of the parking lot. Phew. He was gone. Everyone was gone. It was time to put my plan into action.

I took the keys out of my left pocket and locked all the doors that led into the rink. Good. Nobody could get in now, and the only one besides me who had the key was the manager. Fortunately she was too lazy to come in during the night to finish paperwork anyways.

Earlier I'd thrown the few belongings I had into my lockers (I assigned myself more than one because I didn't want the empty ones to go to waste) and I went to the locker room to retrieve them. I pulled out the ratty sleeping back I'd originally purchased for camping trips with Charlie, but I guess now it's my bed. I'd taken my push light and I set it beside me. My cell phone was to my left, and there was an alarm set on it for four AM.

I yawned. It was nine and I was drained.

I slipped into the smelly sleeping bag and closed my eyes. As exhausted as I was, it took me forever to fall asleep. There were too many things on my mind. When I closed my eyes worries about the eviction, Olympics, and even Edward Cullen just popped into my mind.

Edward.

The very Edward that I'd come to know as a man whore. A shithead. An asshole. A player. A dazzler.

_Yet he can be _so_ funny, kind, charming, and dazzling sometimes_, a little voice reminded me in the back of my head.

'Dazzle' appeared in both of the lists. I couldn't figure out if that was a good or bad thing.

I wondered, did the good things about him overrule the bad?

No, using those girls like he repeatedly did was pretty inexcusable. Worse yet, he didn't even give a shit about it. _Maybe those girls had it coming for them. Maybe they even deserved to get played._ The little voice made its return.

No! I screamed in my head. Rosalie had always told me that I tried too hard to find the good in people when they didn't deserve it. It constantly reminded me of back in high school when I'd gotten paired up with Jessica Stanley for a project and she bailed on me. She didn't even call to tell me that she wouldn't be making it to our scheduled work session.

I had tried to find multiple excuses for her. _Maybe she had a family emergency. Maybe she fell ill. Maybe…_ I told myself. But in the end it was really because she decided to go out with Mike Newton that night instead.

But was the same true with Edward? Was my view all twisted, causing me to give him more credit than I should like I did with Jessica? Or was he genuinely something worth taking a risk for?

* * *

**Edward:**

My watch struck one thirty AM. Bella should be asleep by now. Quiet as a cat, I darted into my Volvo and drove down the winding path and into the moonless night.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Still no lovey dovey feelings yet, but Bella's starting to question her feelings towards Edward. (_Finally it's coming along!_)

Oh, and unfortunately the weekend has once again made its return, so please don't expect any updates for the next two or three days. It's my time to recuperate and plot out the next few chapters.

Thanks for understanding and please drop by a review anyways.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	14. Backseat Slumber

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with this chapter, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

It's been a while, so I wanted to remind you that in the last few chapters, Bella got evicted and lied to Edward about it. Now Edward knows and he thinks it's time for a little payback… And those of you that worry, the daily updates will resume on weekdays.

* * *

_Chapter 14: Backseat Slumber_

**Edward:**

My watch struck one thirty AM. Bella should be asleep by now. Quiet as a cat, I darted into my Volvo and drove down the winding path and into the moonless night.

I'd had a hectic rest of the evening. After practice with Bella, I'd returned to Starbucks to make up my share to one of the baristas. We turned up the elevator music that played so that no one would hear the noise she made when I got her to cum. Damn, that tattoo above her tailbone was s-e-x-y. Afterwards, she inputted her number into my phone saying to call her. Maybe I will. She was one of the best I'd had in Forks so far.

The parking lot for the arena was empty except for one red, rusty truck. There was no doubt in my mind that it belonged to Bella. I chuckled to myself triumphantly. Ha! I had been right! She was just too predictable.

I tiptoed towards the Forks Arena entrance and took the keys out of my pocket. Just earlier I'd deviously shoved my hands into the manager's back jean pockets while making out with her and fished them out. She just thought I was groping her ass. What's her name didn't even notice due to my extremely skilled lips (If I do say so myself).

After that little session Miss Manager offered me free freestyle sessions, but I'd graciously declined. I'd considered asking her to give that offer to Bella but decided not to at the last moment. Knowing Bella she wouldn't appreciate it.

I turned the key in the hole and the lock clicked open. I grinned at the success and crept in, closing it quietly behind me.

Quiet as a mouse, I darted to each of the rooms, looking for Bella. The first place I checked was the office, but the big spinny chair was empty and no one was in sight. If she wasn't in the office she had to be in the girl's locker room.

I pushed the women's locker room door open, trying not to make it creak. It groaned softly, but not enough to awaken someone from their slumber.

Sure enough, Bella was sprawled across the floor in a navy sleeping bag. I smiled at the push light that she'd set next to her. It was starting dim, probably from low battery.

Her hair lay wildly across her pillow and one arm was crossed of her chest. It didn't look like a very comfortable position, and the hard, wooden floor probably wasn't much help. I listened to her breathing and it had a slow, steady rhythm to it. She was dead asleep and it was obvious that she wouldn't be awaking anytime soon.

I kneeled down beside her sleeping bag that she dare called a bed and watched her chest rise up and down with each breath. Her exhales were louder than usual, but not to the point of being called a snore. Even in her sleep there was a little crease between her eyebrows, indicating stress. It almost made me want to reach out with my thumb and stroke the crinkle so that it would smoothen out and give her expression a more serene quality. Sleep was supposed to be relaxing.

"Throw triple loop… Only two more years… Gah!" Bella mumbled as she turned over.

I gawked in amusement. Bella was a sleep talker! I'd never encountered one before even after all the experience I'd had. There was one girl (I couldn't remember her name) that would sleep _walk _but none that sleep talked. A scheming grin spread across my face. It was really all the better for blackmailing her…

"No more diluted juice… No! Tatiana!" I sniggered. No wonder she couldn't sleep peacefully.

"No risk… Edward… No…" My ears perked up as my name was mumbled out of her lips.

Gah! Her lips! They were slightly parted as she slept—causing the bottom one to seem even fuller than normal. I sighed. They looked so delectable.

Then it struck me. Bella looked mightily unconscious. I don't think one gentle brush on her lips would awaken her. Would it? I mean, it'd just be one tiny little peck—all I wanted was to see if her lips were as soft as they appeared to be. Don't think of it as taking advantage of a poor defenseless girl, think of it as more of an experiment.

If I just kissed her and found that they weren't as good as I expected it would probably save me a lot of time fantasizing. But if they were as luscious as they seemed, how would I restrain myself from touching them again and again?

It's not like I could just make out with her every night while she was asleep. Even _I_ knew that was wrong.

It would _only_ take half a second.

I pondered on this. My body ached to bend down and connect our lips, yet my mind told me it was wrong. Knowing Bella she probably hadn't been kissed before. Had she? She was beyond attractive—I'd seen many men get an eyeful of her, but I severely doubted that she would even _let _any of _them_ break the bubble that she secluded herself in.

Nonetheless, for some odd reason it just seemed mind boggling and plain _wrong_ when I thought of Bella even having a boyfriend. She was so absorbed in her skating that I couldn't imagine her devoting her precious time to a man that wasn't her skating partner.

I glanced at her lips again. One glimpse and my resolve wavered further. The urge to just kiss her was starting to win me over.

The angelic side of me fought back.

Bella. Dear, sweet virginal, Bella that (hopefully, for the sake of my insanity) had never been kissed. She didn't deserve to have her first kiss when she was in an unconscious state.

It was completely bizarre. I'd never batted an eye about taking a girl's virginity, it really wasn't a big deal to me and they were completely willing. But now, I was pondering whether to give some girl a kiss? It couldn't really be considered a kiss anyways, more of a light brush of two lips coming together.

Hell, I was blowing this way out of proportion! How was it possible that I didn't mind taking some girl's innocence, but felt guilty about giving Bella her first kiss without her knowing? It was just a kiss—it's not like I was going to knock her up while she was sleeping.

My self control was crumbling away to speckles of dust as the seconds dragged. She was just _too_ accessible at the moment—so vulnerable with nothing to stop me. It was like one of those free kissing booths except the person hosting it was actually hot. It's not like she would even find out about my moment of weakness either. It'd just be my own little secret stashed away in the back of my mind.

Making my decision, I slowly started to leaning down, until my face was just a centimeter away from hers. I closed my eyes and puckered my lips, lowering them to hers.

Right before I made contact, her hand flew up out of no where and slapped me across my cheek as she mumbled something unintelligible and turned to lay on her other side. My eyes flew open in panic. Quickly I pulled away, my heart pounding furiously and studied her. She had not stirred.

I breathed a sigh of relief, and didn't even consider trying to kiss her again. My cheek was still stinging. The heavens above were probably sending me a warning sign to not mess with their most prized possession, Bella's innocence. Hell, the girl was twenty one and still unspoiled. Her track record was practically spotless.

_Stop_!I told myself. No more distractions. I had come here with a plan, and since Bella's lips had held me up I was about fifteen minutes behind schedule. Moving in triple time, I grabbed all of Bella's possessions in view. Whatever I forget we could come back and retrieve later.

That is, if there even _is_ a later. I really hope she doesn't fucking castrate me when she wakes up.

My eyes scanned the locker numbers until they found Bella's number, 153. I'd hacked into the Forks Arena computer to find everyone's assigned locker number and combination. I spun the lock to forty, then back to six, and finally a full rotation to thirty four. It clicked open, revealing Bella's stash of clothes.

There were jeans, shirts, and some random clothes in a pile, but what caught my eye was at the top of the heap.

It was dark, because Bella's light didn't quiet brighten this portion of the room, but I could make out the familiar shape of one of _those _anywhere. Right above a white t-shirt rested Bella's bras. Instantly, my hand reached for the stack and retrieved one.

I took it in my hand and held it over the push light to get a better look at it. It was blue. Hell, it was my favorite color, blue. Not just any blue, it was the perfect shade: midnight. It had lace around the edges and a cute little bow in the middle. It was fucking sexy.

Who knew that Bella had sexy lingerie? Who knew that Bella had sexy lingerie in my _favorite_ color?

Like I always did when I obtained a girl's bra, I held it to my nose and took a whiff of it. Most of them smelled gross and sweaty, practically making me want to puke. Hesitantly I inhaled Bella's scent that lingered on her underwear and the most blissful aroma hit me full on. Her bra smelled fresh, like freesias, practically making my mouth water. It made me wonder what she _tasted_ like.

Next, I fumbled around with her bra, searching for a tag, but it was cut off. Damn, I was hoping to find a size. From my estimations she looked to be about a large B or small C cup. I licked my lips. Seeing her bra was one thing. Seeing her _in_ her bra would be another.

I looked at my watch again. I'd just wasted another ten minutes. Now I was practically half an hour off schedule.

Stupid bra was getting me sidetracked all over again.

I scooped up all of the contents in Bella's locker and made my way to my Volvo that was waiting outside. Quickly, I dumped everything but the blue bra in the trunk. I gingerly hid the bra in the large cup holder and pressed it down to close it. I made sure it had enough room in there because I didn't want it to get flattened.

Now it was time for the tricky part. Transferring Bella from the locker room to the backseat of the Volvo without waking her up wouldn't be an easy task.

I opened the locker room door wide and kept it in place with a door step. Bella was in the same position I'd left her in, curled on her side. Her lips were moving at a quick pace, but no words came out.

Slowly, I slid my hands under the bag of her sleeping bag, not tearing my eyes away from her. I studied each of her breaths, making sure that none of them were out of place. Cautiously, I started lifting her inch by inch. Finally, I stood with her cradled delicately in my arms.

I let out the breath I didn't know I had been holding.

"I can fly…" she mumbled. I muffled a snicker and considered swinging her, but decided against it.

Holding her steadily in my arms I walked slowly out to the parking lot, trying not to shake her figure.

Nudging the car door open wider with my foot, I slid her body that was still confined in the sleeping bag into the spacey back seat. As quietly as I could, I shut the door trying not to make it vibrate the entire car. Hopefully she wouldn't roll over onto the floor during the ride back to my apartment.

Effortlessly, I glided back into the front seat and started my baby. I didn't have to worry about the engine rousing the woman that wore sexy bras in the back seat, since the only noise it made was a gentle hum.

It was almost three AM, and I was the only car on the road. The empty streets made the normally fifteen minute drive only five minutes. The rest of Forks was asleep at this ungodly hour.

Bella mumbled a few undecipherable phrases here and there, but nothing I could comprehend the least.

I pulled into my garage and parked my baby along side its cousin, my Vanquish. I pressed the button that closed the garage door and cringed when it creaked louder than I had expected. The entire time I kept my eyes on Bella, searching for any sign of her stirring, but they never came. Finally, the screeching noise abruptly halted to a stop.

Taking Bella into my arms once more, I carried her into my apartment and into the guest bedroom. Since I didn't think I'd even be having guests when I moved in, I hadn't decorated this sector of my living quarters yet. Bella and I could go shopping sometime to spice up the beige colored walls and comforters.

Actually scratch that. Hopefully she would just start sleeping in my room with me instead. Yes, I liked that idea better.

I set her on the bed and she immediately rolled over. She shivered from the draft of the window, and I moved like lightning to pull the covers over her bare arms.

Quietly, I closed the door and slipped out of the room.

Mission accomplished.

For now.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

_Just wait til Bella wakes up… _

The streak of sweetness in Edward is starting to make its appearance [at long last]!

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	15. Head Up High

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

+The number of reviews for the last chapter practically BLEW ME AWAY! Hopefully this chapter will live up to your expectations.

* * *

_Chapter 15: Head Up High_

**Bella:**

The next morning, I awoke from one of the best nights of sleep I'd ever had. It made me not want to open my eyes, in fear that the last seven hours of peaceful slumber wouldn't come back if I did. Who knew that the women's locker room floor was so comfortable? I stretched my arms out above my head, and they hit something hard and wooden.

Huh.

My eyes flew open.

The first thing I saw was the ceiling. The last time I'd checked, the locker room ceiling was a sickly shade of gray blue. This ceiling was light beige. My head snapped around and I looked about my surroundings.

I was in a room. But it was most certainly _not_ the women's locker room at Forks Arena. Where were the lockers? The wooden floor? The bench that gave you splinters when you sat on it?

I sniffed the air. It smelled clean and new. Where did that sour stench that seemed to cling to the locker room air no matter how much perfume and Febreeze you sprayed in it go?

Abruptly, I sat up, giving myself a nice dose of head rush. I bounced on the surface I was sitting on and heard springs coiling and uncoiling. Sleeping bags weren't bouncy. That had to mean that I was on a bed. _Someone_ had _put_ me on a bed.

Gah! I'd been kidnapped! Sometime during the night someone had broke into the ice rink and taken me from the locker room! Why would they take me? I'm not that valuable or pretty. Wouldn't a thief go for the money stashed in the cash register instead?

I sprung up from the bed and ran to the window. To my relief, the outside street was familiar. On the other side of the road was the Subway that I visited once a week for a sandwich. The kidnapper couldn't have taken me far since I was familiar with the area.

Speaking of the kidnapper, he was no where in sight. Shouldn't he have someone guarding me? Whatever, I should just be thankful that he doesn't.

My fingers curled under the bottom of the window, and lifted it up. It was unlocked, blowing in the cool air.

Damn, this was a really stupid kidnapper. He should have at least locked the windows to prevent my escape. Maybe I'll leave him a copy of 'Kidnapping for Dummies'.

You may be asking, how did I know that the person that took me was a guy? Really, I didn't. But most of the time kidnappers are guys so I'm assuming the person that kidnapped me is a guy too.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps coming towards the door. Eek! Mr. Kidnapper was coming in to check on me! I'd have to hurry if I wanted to make a clean escape.

I fumbled around with the window, pushing it as high as it would go. It was times like these that I wished I were Alice sized, but 5'4" was already pretty petite.

Looking down, I realized that I was only on the second story. Phew. It was still fairly high up, but really, it could have been worse.

Carefully, I stepped one foot outside onto the roof. The door knob was starting to rattle.

Someone was coming in.

I tried to hoist my other leg over the window, but wasn't doing so very successfully. C'mon! Unfortunately I wasn't that limber in the mornings and was having a hard time.

The door swung open and my breath hitched.

"What the hell are you doing?" a familiar voice cried out.

I turned around to a dreary eyed Edward. My savior.

"Edward?" I gasped, stricken. "I'm so happy to see you! How did you get past the kidnapper? Oh thank God you're here to save me. I was so scared!" In one swift movement I heaved the leg that had made it outside the window back into the room. Clumsily, I ran towards Edward, tripping only twice. I jumped onto him, wrapping my legs around his waist.

"Kidnapper?" Edward asked, raising his eyebrows. Nonetheless he returned the embrace.

I nodded, still clinging on tightly to him.

"IknowItoldyouIwasstsayingatmymothersbutthetruthisthatIhadnoplacetogoandsoIdecidedtostayatForksArenaovernightandsomeonemusthavebrokeninandkidnappedmewhileIwassleepingbutnowyou'reherehowdidyoufindmewhere'sthekidnappernow?" the words spilled out a mile a minute. (I know I told you I was staying at my mother's but the truth is that I had no place to go and I decided to stay at the FA (Forks Arena) overnight and someone must have broken in and kidnapped me while I was sleeping, but now you're here! How did you find me? Where's the kidnapper?)

"Slow down, Bella," Edward said. He placed me back on the floor. "You've got it all wrong."

I tilted my head to the side with what must have been a very puzzled look on my face.

"You didn't get kidnapped," he explained slowly. "Well, I guess you kind of did. But this is _my_ apartment." He gestured to our surroundings.

"_You_ kidnapped me?" I sputtered.

"Well, I couldn't have you sleeping at that filthy shithole of a rink."

Edward was the one who'd broken into the locker room and taken me. And here I was thinking that he was my superman! I had had it all wrong. It was all coming together now.

"Oh my God. Do you know how much emotional trauma you put me through? I thought I'd have to jump out of the two story window to get out of here! For all I knew some kind of serial killer or rapist could have been lurking about!"

"Well, I didn't mean for _that_ to happen. I just wanted to teach you a lesson," he said stubbornly.

"Teach me a lesson?" I tested the words out.

He nodded seriously and his expression twisted in anger. "I can't believe that you lied about staying at your mothers! How long did you think it would be before I figured out that she was _dead_? D-E-A-D, dead."

His words were like a slap in the face. It really wasn't necessary to remind me of her in such a fashion. Tears pricked the corner of my eyes but I held them back behind my lids.

"No," I whispered.

"Do you think I'm _stupid_?" he continued his rant. "After you left Starbucks, Alice came in and fucking told me about your mom. Do you know how shitty I felt when she had to spell it out to me? Didn't you think you could trust me? Did you think I would have laughed at you? No shit, I really wouldn't have. Because underneath all this shit I'm not as bad ass of a guy as everyone thinks."

"You know what I would have done? I would've offered to let you crash with me. Because that's what pair skating partners are _supposed _to do. We can rely on each other… We can be honest with one another," he finished.

"I didn't want to be a burden," I said honestly.

He threw his hands up into the air. "You wouldn't have been! I have millions! Money is the least of my worries."

If only we were all that lucky.

"I didn't want another Bella Swan pity party," I spat viciously. I was done with _those_.

He looked taken aback. I knew I'd gotten him _there_. He composed himself quickly though.

"Why can't you just ask for help?"

"I am a strong independent woman," I replied hotly. "I can fend on my own."

It was true. I'd been supporting myself for almost four years now and I'd managed just fine. Well, just fine up until now.

"Obviously, you can't. Or else you would have paid your bills and this damn eviction wouldn't have happened," Edward pointed out.

"I had everything under control until you spoiled my plans. I would have coped just fine living at the rink until I gathered enough paychecks to rent out a new place," I sniffed.

He grabbed onto my arm tightly. "Stop trying to convince yourself that! You'll kill yourself if you keep believing all this 'I'm an independent woman' shit. Ask me for help. You need it," he demanded.

"I don't need _anyone's _help. I'm just _fine_ on my own," I tried to pull away, but his grip did not loosen. If anything he held onto my wrist even tighter.

"No, you aren't."

"Yes, I am."

He sighed in exasperation.

"So many people have tried to make you open up. Alice. Rosalie. Emmett. Jasper. All your friends know you need it. But you always shut yourself away from their assistance. You need to have someone taking care of you. Since I'm your skating partner, it's my obligation," Edward declared. His grasp was starting to slacken and his eyes were a soft emerald.

I started to shake my head. "It's not—"

"Fine. Okay, then. If you can't accept that, all I ask is for you to stay at my place instead of that shitty locker room. That's my one little request of you," he pleaded.

"Please, Bella. Just this once."

I hesitated and my shoulders slumped. It would just be a waste of energy to argue with him any longer.

"Okay," I finally whispered.

"What?" he asked; probably surprised that I wasn't giving much of a fight.

"Okay. I'll stay—but only for a few weeks—if possible, even less. Once I have enough money I'll move out and find my own place," I agreed reluctantly.

"Really? You're giving in?" he hooted excitedly.

I gave a defeated nod and hung my head.

"Hey," he said softly. His warm hand down and brushed my cheek. Was I hallucinating or did I feel some kind of zap when his skin made contact with mine? "Hold your head up high. Everyone needs help sometimes. It's nothing to be ashamed of."

Sure, maybe to him it _wasn't_, but to me it _was_. Ever since I moved out of Charlie's, all I'd ever wanted was to prove that I could survive on my own. I wanted everyone to know that I didn't need anyone by myself to lean on or support me.

Forks, being the small town it was had a bigger gossip base than Hollywood. After I moved out of Charlie's a lot of the rumors had circled about town always revolving around me. I'd heard one too many:

'_Did you hear the police chief disowned his only daughter?'_

Followed by_: 'No way!'_

And the much anticipated:_ 'Way!' _

Going out in public was always a pain. I could feel as well as hear the whispers and stares boring into my back every time I ran into old high school acquaintances and their parents. Sometimes they'd have the nerve to approach me and actually boast about their recent accomplishments.

"_Jessica just finished her first semester in college! She has such a _fabulous_ future paved ahead of her…"_

"_Eric is now majoring in Journalism and is already the chief editor of Forks Weekly!" _

Finally, the most horrendous of them all:

"_What college are you enrolled in? Oh, that's right; you're doing that ice skating thing. Well, _(cue for the fake smile) _good luck with that._

I hated it. I wanted to prove them all wrong. Hell, I'd win that Olympic Gold medal, come back with tons of sponsors and throw the first pitch for the Mariners baseball game next to Ichiro Suzuki who would be begging for my autograph.

Still, I just knew the town gossips would have a field day once they knew about how I was going to be staying with Edward. _'Did you hear that Edward Cullen, the wealthy, attractive, young man that just moved here is taking in Bella Swan as a charity case? Wouldn't he make such a great couple with my Jessica?'_

The worst was _definitely_ yet to come.

I looked back up at Edward, who gave me a reassuring smile.

Yet, maybe as long as arrogant ass Edward didn't make his five hundredth reappearance things wouldn't be so bad.

However, I knew better than to count on _that_.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

For all my worriers, I try to balance the amount of content between 'real life' and 'figure skating'. Right now we're focusing on 'real life' with Bella's eviction and all, but don't worry, the skating stuff will come back… : )

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	16. Karma's A Bitch

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 16: Karma's a Bitch_

**Edward:**

I couldn't get myself to believe it— yet somehow it'd just happened before me. Bella had actually agreed to move in with me. I thought this would take weeks or maybe months of pleading and strategic reasoning, but I guess not. She just had the most intriguing inner workings

I looked down at her sullen face, trying to find any trace of ecstasy or spark, but all I saw was defeat. She looked down at her feet and her attempted smile sagged.

"Hey," I said tenderly. My hand reached down to stroke her naturally pinked cheek. It was softer and smoother than I had anticipated. If I didn't watch myself I could have just left my hand there for hours. "Hold your head up high. Everyone needs help sometimes. It's nothing to be ashamed of."

She nodded slightly, but her eyes had a clouded, faraway look in them. I'd do anything to be able to know what she was thinking.

I watched her for the next few moments. Her eyes darkened every few seconds and shadows crossed and uncrossed her delicate features.

"So you carried me from the rink to your car, out of the car into this room?" she asked suddenly, panicked.

"Yeah," I shrugged.

"Oh my god… You're arms are probably really sore this morning…" she noted, embarrassed.

I gave her a look that said: 'Don't go there'. "Bella, you're as light as a feather! Plus, I'm getting used to carrying you anyways."

"Not when I'm sleeping and you have to carry my dead weight!" she cried.

"Let's go get some breakfast," I suggested, ignoring her ridiculous outbursts.

Her head snapped up in surprise. "But what about—"

"We can sort all this shit out later, I'm famished," I dismissed her protests with a flick of my wrist.

"But—"

"I'm not pleasant when I'm hungry," I cautioned Bella seriously. That convinced her to quiet. Hopefully she hadn't taken me _too_ seriously there.

"So, that being said," I continued. "Where to? _Danske Taste_ makes excellent Swedish pancakes… _Mélangos_ is good for a traditional American breakfast… You know; eggs, bacon, waffles, and all that good stuff."

Bella chewed on her lower lip and shook her head. "I don't like to eat out a lot."

"Don't be silly, the bill would be on me," I responded, annoyed. How many times did I have to tell her that money was not an issue? Did I really have to pound the simple concept in her head?

She put her hands on her hips and grimaced. "It's not the money… Well it kind of is, but that's not the main reason. Restaurant food has loads of salt, fatty oils, unneeded sugar, and enriched ingredients."

Aw hell, here we go again with all the health crap.

"Are you saying that I'm fat?" I gasped in mock horror and my hand went up to my mouth and down to my stomach.

She rolled her eyes at my dramatic performance and shook her head no. "It's essential for a skater to have a nutritious diet. All the sugar in restaurant foods _may_ give you a temporary dose of energy, but it'll just burn out twice as fast."

"Sure doc, whatever you say."

Her eyes narrowed. "So instead of eating out, I'm going to cook us a homemade, _healthy_, breakfast."

She had a determined fire blazing in her eyes, and I knew better than to mess with women when they were like _that_. Hell, they were unstoppable.

--

Half an hour later, I was sitting patiently at the dining table for the first time. When I asked Bella if I could do _anything _to help, she just told me to set the table. It made me feel like an eight year old in a twenty three year old man's body.

Heavenly aromas wafted through the air from the kitchen and caressed my nose. I heard sounds of sizzling, mixing, and pots and pans clattering together coming from Bella's work area.

Just earlier, when I'd introduced her to my brand new kitchen, her reaction was priceless.

"I can't believe you have a Golden-Cooker 3000," Bella breathed, as she ran her hand across the shiny surface of my stove. "It's beautiful."

I openly gawked at her. Golden-Cooker 3000? I thought that all stoves were the same. Apparently I was wrong.

Then, a bunch of snide comments involving 'kitchen-geeks' formulated in my mind, but I didn't dare say anything. Her expression was one of such ecstasy that I didn't have the heart to spoil her bubbling excitement.

Finally, the clattering and banging from the kitchen came to a stop, making it quiet enough for me to hear Bella's cheerful humming. I was familiar with the tune but couldn't quite place it.

She stepped out of the kitchen doorway and her words came out rushed as if she were a mother taking care of naughty twin boys. "It'll be ready in a few. The French toast is finishing up."

I turned my head towards her and felt my eyes widen into saucers as I drank in the sight of her.

Bella's hair was pulled back into a messy bun making it so loose strands hung down the sides of her face. Her cheeks were flushed from the steam that emitted from the stove and her lips were bright pink. She was also wearing a cute little white and checkered apron that hugged her butt.

"Great…" I trailed off.

Satisfied with my response, she flounced back out of the dining room in much the same way she came in.

True to her word, five minutes later, Bella came out with a bowl of scrambled eggs, strips of bacon, and a stack of pancake with strawberries on the side. I eyed the still warm food that she'd lay in front of me and licked my lips hungrily.

"Where's the maple syrup? I know there's some in my pantry somewhere," I said, starting to stand.

"I saw. The maple syrup is full of sugars that your body doesn't need. Instead I put strawberries on the side for some natural sugar to go with your pancakes."

"Oh."

"The pancakes are whole wheat," she announced proudly.

Immediately, my stomach dropped. My last health chick fling had attempted to whip up some 'whole wheat' pancakes and they ended up harder than hockey pucks. I think I might have chipped one of my molars that day. Then again, she was dumber than a stack of bricks so I should have been thankful that she didn't burn down my kitchen.

Bella hadn't picked up her fork yet and was staring at me expectantly.

Hesitantly, I grabbed one of the pancakes and set one on my plate with a strawberry.

I cut a chunk off it, revealing a fluffy white center. I plopped it in my mouth and chewed nervously. I'd made sure to place a glass of water next to me in case they tasted as the Sahara.

It was like heaven for my taste buds. The flavor was exquisite, not too salty or sweet, and if I held it on my tongue it would melt in my mouth. The insides were lush just like I liked them. A smile inched onto my face.

If my memory served correct, these were even better than Esme's.

"These are delicious. Gah…" I looked up towards the heavens and closed my eyes, savoring the scrumptious taste.

Bella broke into her own dazzling smile and beamed.

"I'm glad," she said softly.

Suddenly ravenous, I reached and grabbed half of the stack of pancakes Bella had set out. She chuckled softly while I smiled sheepishly back.

I even popped a strawberry in my mouth and realized Bella was right—the natural sugar in the strawberry was better than the sticky syrup.

"Seriously, Bella," I addressed her in an astonished tone in between happy bites. "Who the hell taught you how to cook like this?"

"My father's friend, Sue, used to always give me recipes. I always cooked for Charlie and Renee since they always got home late. Through high school I worked at a local diner for a few months. There was a sweet Italian cook there that would stay up to teach me her cooking tips," she explained.

I think I've been deprived of _real_ food until now.

"Have you ever thought about getting a culinary degree?" I asked.

She immediately shook her head, no. "The food industry isn't really my thing. The kitchen can get too chaotic."

"So what are you going to do after this skating business is over?" I inquired curiously.

She chuckled darkly. "I don't plan on it being 'over'. I'm hoping that I'll be hired to join some ice show like 'Champions on Ice' for money. Maybe be a sports commentator for figure skating once I'm too old for that."

"Oh."

"Do you have plans for your future?"

I paused for a second, not sure whether or not to tell her my other dreams besides skating.

"Well, I think I'm going to go back to school for a degree in music," I stuttered shyly.

Her eyes widened in surprise but she didn't say anything.

"Yeah. I compose my own piano concertos," I added quickly..

She was quiet for a moment. "That's amazing. Sometimes I wish I could be good at something besides skating," she sighed wistfully. I arched my eyebrows and leaned a closer to her. "I don't know if I want to do skating related things until I retire, but it's the only thing I'm remotely good at."

"That's not true," I countered loudly. "You're the best cook I've ever encountered."

"I highly doubt that," she scoffed.

I nodded vigorously and she sighed again.

"Whatever. It doesn't matter," Bella said suddenly. "I have enough going on right now; I don't want to worry about the future."

My heart went out for her. She had so much on her plate already and there was probably even more coming her way.

I scraped the last bit of scrambled egg off the bowl and it was completely empty. _All_ the plates on the table were empty.

I groaned. "Aw hell. I'm so full, Tatiana will probably have to whip me like Santa does to his reindeer to get me moving," I joked. She burst into laughter and it sounded like the ringing of wind chimes. It was beautiful.

She stood and started picking up the polished plates to clear the table. I put my hand on her arm to stop her, and a strange electric force zinged up to my shoulder. I was speechless for a moment, but recovered quickly. Still, I couldn't help but wonder: 'What was that'?

"The maid will clear the table."

"It's just cleaning up a few dishes. I'm fine doing it myself," she insisted.

"Do you want the money I pay my maid to go to waste?" I asked. She sighed and shook her head and set the dish back down.

"I just thought—"

"Well don't," I interrupted slyly.

Right on cue, Olga, my maid bustled through the door with her cleaning cart. She too, sported a blue apron, but it didn't look half as good as it had on Bella. "Good morning Mr. Cullen," she greeted me formally.

"Olga," I tsked. "How many times have I requested of you to call me Edward?"

"Yes Mr. Cullen," Olga obeyed. Her gaze went to Bella and a frown contorted her face, but she immediately plastered on a forced smile.

I knew Olga had a bigger than small crush on me and it always bothered her when she saw me with other girls. She cleaned full time at my apartment and lived in my attic; so she dealt with the disappointment quite often.

"Who is your _lovely_ guest, Mr. Cull—I mean Edward," she asked, her eyes narrowing.

Yup, she was definitely jealous. I'd slept with her once, but it wasn't really enjoyable so I tried to refrain from doing so again. She was too mechanical. During sex, when I ordered: "Faster Olga! Faster!" Her response was: "Of course—pant—Mr.—pant—Cullen."

"This is Bella—my new skating partner," I introduced. "Bella, this is my maid, Olga."

"Nice to meet you," Bella greeted warmly.

"Yes. You too. I guess," Olga sniffed. She didn't shake the hand that Bella had offered which made me start seeing red.

Bella dropped her hand back down to her side awkwardly and I tried my best to give her an apologetic look. Olga's behavior today was simply despicable.

I glared at Olga, but she just turned her head away and started clearing the dishes. Bella shifted her weight from side to side, obviously uncomfortable.

"Olga," Bella said in a clear voice. "Would you like me to help you clear the table? That way you won't have to make two trips…"

I honestly couldn't believe that she had offered to help—of all people—the maid. I elbowed her, but she wasn't fazed. What was the point of having a maid if you did all the work for her?

"No, I think I can handle it," Olga glowered. Bella nodded and shrank back behind me.

Olga, being the stubborn mule she was, juggled six plates and a few glasses in her two hands. Obviously she was trying to prove to Bella that she could do it _herself_ in only _one_ trip.

A few seconds later, after Olga disappeared into the kitchen we heard dishes and glasses clattering to the ground.

"Oh dear," Bella murmured.

I just smirked. Karma's a bitch.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Also, this was somewhat of a filler, but the next plot twist is brewing and will be coming to town soon!

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	17. Mind You

**Summary:**

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 17: Mind You_

**Bella:**

"I still don't like this," I said, crossing my arms.

Edward had insisted on bringing me to 'Linens and Things' to buy new furniture to decorate my bare room. All I really needed was a bed—it really wasn't necessary for it to be decorated.

"Your opinion doesn't matter. We're redecorating your room anyways," Edward insisted. He held up two different comforters. "Now which is it going to be?"

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a green colored comforter that was on sale and only ten dollars. Finally, it was the only one I'd found in a reasonable price range.

"That one!" I said, pointing to it.

Edward grinned at my newfound enthusiasm, but his face immediately fell when he saw which one I'd pointed at and its price tag.

"Bella, you can't be serious. The pigment looks like it came from puke. Oh and don't even think about picking the least expensive things," he grimaced. I gave him a long look.

I pouted again for probably the tenth time. _Really_, the beige sheets that I already had were just fine.

"I don't need all _this_," I said, gesturing towards the filled shopping cart. "I'm only going to be staying at your place for a few weeks until I save up enough to get my own apartment. It's not worth buying all _this_ if I'm only going to use it for less than six months."

With an annoyed expression on his face, he threw the comforter into the shopping cart. I cringed when I saw how many items were in there. There was a self assemble desk, lamp, cans of paint, bookshelf, and other unneeded things. Hopefully I won't pass out when we go to the check out register.

"The blue one it is," he said, choosing for me. From my observations I'd learned that Edward was very fond of anything blue. Every time I wore blue he always complimented my outfit.

I'd taken to organizing my closet so that all the blue articles were in the front and the back held all the stuff that wasn't blue.

Not that I was changing my dressing habits to impress Edward. Hell no, I just think blue looks really good with my pale complex… Okay, so maybe it did have a little to do with Edward, but I just wanted to look decent for him.

Hmm, maybe I could ask Alice if she could start making all my practices dresses blue. Maybe even blue leg warmers…

Alice. I gulped at the sound of her name. I'm yet to tell her about my new living arrangements with Edward.

"Onward to the rugs," Edward declared, dragging me through the warehouse.

I grumbled something unintelligible. Bed sheets, I can understand but seriously, who needs a _rug_?

Nonetheless, I trudged towards the section that held all the blue rugs. They came in all different shades and designs.

A sky blue one, with silver trim around the edges immediately caught my eye. My hand reached to touch the material.

"It's so soft," I murmured to myself.

The next moment, I felt Edward's cool breath tickling my ear. "We'll take it!" he exclaimed.

Immediately I retracted my hand from the soft fabric. "No!" I protested. My eyes searched frantically for the price tag but Edward had the thin piece of paper secured in his hand. Figures, he's not going to let me see the price.

"Now, how about we get a mini fridge to put next to that bookshelf?" Edward asked lightly. "They're so convenient and—"

I growled and interrupted all his ridicule. "Don't push it, mister. You're lucky I even agreed to the bookshelf."

* * *

"I don't want to see the receipt," I shuddered.

"Nobody's asking you to look at it," Edward smirked.

Gah! I did the mental math in my head and I think the costs totaled to possibly over a thousand dollars.

We were now heading into the parking lot. Edward was carrying six of the bags with ease while I was only holding two. I'd offered to hold four so that we'd carry the same amount, but Edward just laughed and called me silly.

I felt a tingling in my side pocket. My cell phone was vibrating. I switched the bag in my right hand so that my left was holding both bags.

My hand fumbled in my pocket, trying to get a hold of my phone before it went to my voicemail. My favorite picture of Alice in sweatpants flashed on the screen. You're probably thinking, 'Alice in sweats? No way', but I did get her to wear them once. We'll save that story for another time.

"Who's that?" Edward asked.

"Alice," I replied quickly, flipping the phone open and holding it up to my ear.

"Wait! You might—" Edward started to say something, but I put my finger up to my lips to shush him.

"Hello?" my voice came out breathless.

"Bella?" Alice's tone was timid and pitiful.

"What's wrong?" I panicked.

"Don't you love me?" she asked, in that same heartbreaking little girl voice.

"Of course I do. You know that." What a silly question to ask.

"Then why did I have visions of you shopping to redecorate your room _with _Edward and not me? You know how I've been dying to shop for furniture with you!"

"Oh," I muttered, my cheeks turning pink. From her tone I could tell I had seriously hurt her feelings, and hurried to defend myself.

"Well—"

"And," her voice rose. "Why didn't you tell me about how you got _evicted_?"

My heart may have skipped a beat. How did she know about that? Maybe my nosy neighbor, Mrs. Cope told the whole town already. Maybe…

"I just—"

"I've been waiting by the phone for the past twenty four hours waiting for you to call and let me know, but you _still_ haven't!" Alice wailed.

"And when I finally found out it was from—of all people—Edward Cullen!" she continued. The sleek phone almost slipped out of my hands and my eyes immediately went to glare at Edward. Why hadn't he told me this earlier? Thankfully, he had the decency to look sheepish and it seemed like he was trying to hide behind all the bags he was carrying.

"I'm so—"

"So Edward's your new best friend now? You let _him_ take you shopping and you tell _him_ all of your secrets?" Alice accused.

"No! Of course not! It's just that you know how I hate to make a big deal out of things. And…And, I really didn't want to worry anyone and… Well Edward graciously offered his place to me and I accepted, so now we're going shopping to decorate my new room—which wasn't my idea—"

"Wait!" Alice broke my sputtering. "You're staying with _Edward_ now? Like, like, like living in his _apartment_?!" her tone had taken a complete one-eighty and had regained its regular bubbly quality.

"Yes, but he blackmailed me into it," I sighed. I felt Edward slap my shoulder playfully, which I ignored.

"Oh!" Alice squealed. "That's fabulous! I'm so happy that you're finally being more opened minded, Bella!"

I groaned. "I'm not close-minded, just realistic. And stop acting so excited because it's only temporary."

"Sure, sure, whatever," Alice chirped. "Anyways—I'll drop by later with some clothes I bought over the weekend. I just saw them and I was like—Omigod they're so Bella!—so I just _had_ to get them. Before you complain I'll let you know that they were thirty percent off. Bye!"

There was a click on the other end.

I sighed. _That_ was the price of being Alice's best friend. Nevertheless, it was completely worth it.

Right when I was about to tuck my phone into my pocket and start hammering Edward about why he told Alice, it started ringing again.

I saw Edward visibly relax—probably he wasn't looking forward to my wrath.

"Don't think I'm going to forget about this," I warned.

"Yeah, but I have some extra time to figure out how I'm going to defend myself," he grinned.

I looked onto the screen, expecting it to be Alice telling me more about what she'd bought for me, but it was Emmett. The picture was taken a few months ago and every time I saw it, it made me laugh. His cheek was pressed against the camera as if he was rammed into it and the whole thing was just goofy—like him.

"Hello?" I practically sang into the phone.

"Oh my God, Bella. Holy shit, thank God," Emmett panted into the phone.

"Emmett? What's wrong?" I asked frantically, the worst case scenarios were starting to fill my brain.

"Thank God you're okay! Hell, you had me so fucking worried!" he bellowed.

"What? Me?" I was genuinely confused.

"Yes!" his voice was still frazzled.

"Indoor voice, honey," I think I hear Rosalie murmur in the background.

"So I fucking show up at your apartment just to check up on you and I find a sign on your door that says 'For Rent', and I even go home and drag Rosalie over to see if maybe I had a short term memory loss and had gotten the wrong door, but she confirmed that I'd had the right one! So then I think that maybe someone kidnapped you and erased your records, or you eloped with some guy you might have met at a bar, or—Where are you?"

"Shopping," I laughed at how absurd I sounded.

"Impostor! You're not Bella! She would never go shopping on a Wednesday morning! Hell, she probably wouldn't even go on a Saturday afternoon!"

"Ha-ha. Well, let me tell you: it wasn't voluntary."

"Wait, so why did you move out of your apartment then?" Emmett asked, confusion coloring his voice.

"Ha-ha, you see funny story. Well, I kind of got behind on the bills last month and well, you can probably guess what happened…" I chuckled nervously.

"You got evicted?" Emmett asked flatly. "Where are you sleeping? Please don't tell me you're bed hopping."

"Emmett!" I gasped. "No… I'm staying at a friend's."

"Oh, Alice and Jasper's? That's fine," he said, his approval evident.

"Uh, no… I'm staying with Edward Cullen. You know, that fabulous gentleman I introduced you to the other night at Olive Garden?" I braced myself for his explosion.

"WHAT?" Emmett roared.

"Well, he offered, and well, I couldn't really say no because I really needed a place to stay and—"

"Edward Cullen?!" Emmett hollered. I cringed at his excessive volume. It was so loud that I'm pretty sure Edward heard it too. Obviously Emmett remembered his previous encounter with the infamous Edward was still fresh in his mind. "There is _no_ way I'm letting you _live_ with that smartass! You can come live with me and Rose for the time being."

"Really, Em, that isn't necessary. You and Rosalie are already crowded in your apartment and I really don't think it's a smart idea for me to join the party," I reasoned. "Plus, Edward has an extra bedroom in his spacious apartment and the only other person that lives there is the maid," I added conveniently.

"Sweetheart, Edward wasn't so bad. Think about how much it'll help Bella's skating if they get to know each other better." Rosalie coaxed Emmett in the background.

"Get to know each other better? Hell no! If he as much as lays one finger on her I'm gonna pummel him to the ground." Emmett howled.

"Shh, he's right next to me and can probably hear you," I hissed.

"Good. Let this be a warning," he said, this time intentionally loudly.

Edward gave me an amused glance and I just grimaced.

"Hand the phone to that bastard," Emmett ordered.

"Only if you promise to be nice," I bargained.

"Whatever, just give him the damn phone."

"Be nice," I said firmly, handing the phone over to Edward.

"Hello?" His voice was smooth and fluid like liquid. "Yes sir… Of course... No, I wouldn't dream of it…"

He handed the phone back to me wordlessly.

"Bella, remember '**The Ultimate Guide for Girls on All the Tricks Guys Try That They Should Not Fall For'** speech I gave you last week. I think I'll be enrolling you in self defense classes soon, so I'll keep you posted," Emmett mused.

"Of course."

"He better not…"

"I'll make sure he doesn't. You should go get some rest. Love you."

"Fine, I'll borrow a pair of Alice's high heels kick him in the balls _hard_ if he tries anything. Love you too," Emmett sighed in defeat.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Also, just wanted to remind you that the weekend is coming... so please don't expect updates until Tuesday at the earliest. So, to get the schedule down, Tues-Friday are daily updates, and then Sat-Mon are my break days :)

Thanks for understanding, and please drop by a review anyways.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	18. Tippy Toes

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 18: Tippy Toes_

**Edward:**

"I can't believe I'm doing this," I whined.

"Stop being such a baby," Bella chastised. "At least I didn't make you wear those black tights that were recommended."

She literally pushed me into the ballet studio, pressing her warm little body against mine to get me moving. My resistance had an ulterior motive.

"Real men don't dance around on their tippy toes to Swan Lake," I moaned.

Worst yet, Bella was wearing _sweats_ to ballet class. What was the point of going if I didn't get to see her in a tight leotard and pink tights? Damn, the only reason I'd complied to going was because I thought I'd get to see her in them.

"This is so degrading to men everywhere," I grumbled.

"Cry me a river. Build a bridge. And get over it," Bella scorned.

I stumbled into the spacious studio. Victoria and James were finishing up their practice.

All of a sudden, Bella stopped in her tracks, as did I.

_"Hot damn!" _I muttered. Victoria was wearing a flashy red leotard that squeezed her ass to the max and dipped so low that it left little to the imagination. I didn't need an imagination though, since I'd already seen her buck naked.

Poor James was struggling to keep up beside her. He was dancing with a raging hard on that was prominent through the tight ballet pants he was wearing. An outfit like that could do that to a man. Poor guy. Victoria caught my eye and she flashed me a seductive smile. Next thing, she pirouetted her way across the floor, intentionally giving me (and James) a one hundred degree view of her.

Bella shifted her weight uncomfortably from side to side.

"Edward, it's _so_ nice to see you," Victoria cooed, she reached up and rubbed my shoulder. "Oo-lala, big boy's got some mu-scles," she purred. Her hand continued to linger there. I flexed, and she giggled again. Girls were _too_ easy to please.

Bella cleared her throat.

"Bella! Oh I didn't see you there! _You know _how Edward can have that effect on us women," Victoria fanned herself and batted her eyelashes. "Anyways, could I _talk_ to you—" her gaze was fixed on me"—for a moment in _private_," she emphasized the last bit.

Before I could respond, Bella cut in.

"I'm sorry, but Edward's in training mode right now and we don't tolerate any distractions. If you want to talk to him, he's available _after_ we practice," Bella said, all business.

Victoria sneered. "Well then," she plastered on a smile. "Edward, if you ever want to be treated like a real man again, I'm just a call away."

I nodded noncommittally which seemed to extinguish some of Bella's rage.

The only problem with Victoria's plan was that I'd already lost her number after she scrawled it out on a napkin for me.

She squeezed my arm one more time before prancing away. Her hips swayed side to side with each step. James followed like a tracker, panting after her. I gave him a look that said: _You are so whipped, man_.

He returned it with one that said: _At least I'm gettin some._ Really, it was a universal language that only men could understand. I scowled at him and turned my attention back to Bella who was mumbling to herself quietly while slipping on her ballet shoes.

A petite dark haired woman with blonde highlights walked briskly into the studio. Though her hair was styled in a small, neat bun, it was unmistakable that this was Dominica, Tatiana's sister. They had the same slender face with angular cheek bones and pointed noses.

"We start dance now!" Dominica declared, clapping her hands together.

Bella flounced to the center of the floor and swept a deep curtsy. "Miss Dominica," she greeted softly.

I wasn't sure what to do. Was it customary to bow to the teacher before class started?

Whatever, it wouldn't be a crime to mix up the class with my _own_ style would it? I walked briskly towards Dominica, took her hand and kissed it. "Edward Cullen. I'm Bella's new partner. Pleasure to meet you," I said smoothly.

"Oh yes… Tatiana tell me lots about certain Mr. Cullen," Dominica fluttered, taken aback. "You don't seem so awful like she say."

I just winked and released her hand. Bella was standing by the ballet bar with her mouth hanging open. Now _that_ is how Edward Cullen works it.

"We start with _plie _**(1)**," Dominica clapped her hands together. She demonstrated, and it looked like a fairly easy move. All you had to do was bend your knees with your feet turned out.

Bella nodded, like the obedient teacher's pet she was, and copied each movement.

Meanwhile, I just leaned against the bar idly, and checked out myself in the mirror. Huh, Victoria was right; my arms did look pretty good today.

Dominica turned on the CD player and sat down on her chair to watch. I hadn't really paid attention to her demonstration so I just watched Bella and copied each of her movements. Her heels were together and her toes were turned out. Quickly, I copied the pose.

"And _plie_!" Dominica called. Bella bent her knees so that the space in between her legs formed a diamond shape. I copied. Huh, this shit was easy— all you had to do was bend your knees and straighten them to the music.

"_Releve _**(2)**_!_" What the hell was a _releve_? I didn't get all this ballet lingo. Earlier, Bella told me that all the terms were spoken in French. What was wrong with good ole English?

Frantically I looked at Bella and saw that she was balancing on her toes. Quickly, I duplicated the position.

"High on toe Mr. Cullen! Higher!" Dominica instructed. What the hell was the crazy ass woman saying? I was standing as high as I could on my toes and my legs were starting to burn. How long did we have to hold this shit for?

"Arabesque **(3)**!" Bella lifted one leg into the air so that both legs together formed a ninety degree angle. Shit, did Dominica expect me to get _my_ leg _that_ high? Nonetheless, I complied and lifted my right leg up as high as it could go—which was about half the height of Bella's.

"More Edward! More!" Dominica hollered.

Was she shitting me? My leg couldn't go any higher than—

I was broken out of my thoughts when an excruciating pain shot straight through to groin. My breath came out in short puffs. Dominica was behind me, lifting my leg higher. Fuck, it hurt like hell.

My standing leg was beginning to ache and beads of sweat were rolling down my face. I looked in front of me to see Bella holding her _arabesque_ or whatever it was called with perfect ease.

"Straighter leg!" Dominica called from behind.

I grunted and tried to straighten my leg, but failed miserably due to my lack of flexibility. I mean, seriously I'm a _man_. We weren't made to be flexible like girls were.

Abruptly, Dominica jerked my leg up higher, and I think I heard something snap in my leg. "Fucking shit," I hissed. I felt like a rubber band that was stretched out so much that it was about to snap.

"Finally, good height," she declared, satisfied. "Now hold by yourself."

She let go of my leg, which I had been supporting on, and I felt my muscles straining to keep it at the same height.

"No droop! Hold! No! You drooping!"

I growled. My leg was starting to shake. I sneaked another peak at Bella who was still like a statue, holding her leg up at least five inches higher than I was. Not a single trace of fatigue was visible. She even had her arm over her head or decoration. Show off.

Damn it, I couldn't take this painful shit anymore. With a groan, my leg collapsed to the ground.

"Mr. Cullen!" Dominica shrieked, enraged. "DID I TELL YOU PUT LEG DOWN? NO I DO NOT THINK I SAID! YOU LISTEN TO INSTRUCTOR!"

I took a step away form her to maintain a safe distance and I leaned against the bar to catch my breath. Dominica was scarier than her sister, Tatiana, when she was angry—I didn't even think that was possible.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Bella clamp her hand over her mouth to keep from giggling. _She_ was still holding the hellish position. Fuck, I hated her so much right now.

"I TELL YOU TO HOLD LEG UP, YOU HOLD LEG UP! WHEN I TELL YOU PUT LEG DOWN, YOU CAN PUT LEG DOWN," Dominica continued ranting.

I just put my hands into the air, palms up, and nodded. It was fucking miserable. I felt like a little school boy getting scolded by the teacher all over again.

"Miss Swan, you may put leg down," Dominica said sweetly. She turned back to me, and I gulped. "You, Mr. Cullen, hold five more minutes!"

I stared back at her like she was some psycho (which she probably was) and opened my mouth to protest.

"GET LEG UP NOW!" she screamed. Terrified, I jerked my leg up and counted down the seconds until my five minutes of hell were over.

Unfortunately, it turned out much longer than that.

* * *

After the tortuous hour of balancing on my toes, my calves were burning and I didn't think I could lift my arms above my shoulders. Thankfully, class was over.

The class wasn't all torture though. It turned out that Bella had her leotard on underneath her sweats that she took off after the 'warm up'. Of course, hers wasn't as ostentatious as Victoria's, but it fit her form nicely. It was a lovely shade of faded blue with a few rhinestones lining the collar. The back dipped fairly low had Alice's designer symbol, showing that it was an original.

"Good work today Miss Swan," Dominica beamed at the end of the hour. "You improve so rapid!" Bella nodded and muttered thanks. I eyed her appreciatively. Her skin looked slick with sweat and her chestnut hair was sticking to her face in the cutest fashion.

"You, Mr. Cullen!" she pointed at me. "You need lots work. I talk to Tatiana to schedule more ballet private lesson with me so you improve faster!"

"I don't think that's necessary—" I started. It was no use.

"I ask you last time. Are you ballet professional? No. I am ballet professional. You do not make decision for me. _I_ think you need more practice means that you _need_ more practice," Dominica challenged, through narrowed eyes.

I knew better than to object. I'd had a whole hour to learn _that_.

Bella shot me a sympathetic look.

"I see you two Friday. Stretch everyday," Dominica reminded us. She slung her Coach bag over her shoulder and strutted out.

Once she was out the door, I collapsed onto the coach in the sitting area and closed my eyes.

"Here," I heard Bella's voice say. I opened my eyes and saw her handing me an unopened bottle of water that I direly needed.

"Thanks. I forgot to bring my own bottle," I rasped, chugging the cool liquid down greedily.

She smiled slyly. "I thought you would so I brought an extra."

I bobbed my head up and down, still sloshing the water down my throat. Who knew that it could taste so good? Finally, I screwed the cap back on. The bottle was already three quarters empty. Bella on the other hand, was still sipping on hers daintily.

"I guess that stamina of yours needs a little work," Bella giggled, taking in my form that was sprawled lazily across the coach. There was a twinkle in her eye that seemed to light up her whole face.

"My stamina is great," I defended myself, trying not to pant.

"Mmhmm… Whatever you say."

I growled. "Ballet just doesn't put my stamina in its greatest light. If you know what I mean…"

"Oh?" Bella asked, amused. "Then what does?"

"Sex," I stated certainly. "I can prove it to you," I brushed the hair that was sticking on her cheek behind her ear.

Her eyes widened and she exhaled sharply. "No, it's okay. I believe you," she stuttered.

I smirked. "Are you sure?"

She nodded fiercely. The blush on her cheeks was chart topping.

"Okay," I pondered. "Well if we're not going to have sex then _at least_ let me take you out to dinner."

She shook her head reflexively. "No, I don't like to—"

"I know you don't like to have any personal interactions with your skating coworkers," I mimicked. "Think of this more as a dinner for celebrating the fact that I survived my first ballet class."

She was quiet.

"Plus, what fun would it be for me to drop you off at _our_ apartment, go eat _by myself_, and then come back?" I leaned closer. "Please," I breathed, looking her straight into her deep chocolate eyes.

"O-okay, just tonight though… Because we're _celebrating_," she stammered.

I kissed her softly on the cheek, surprised that she hadn't pulled away.

"Shower up and I'll meet you back in the lobby in half an hour."

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Aww.. don't you love how Bella takes care of Edward? :)

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	19. Open Your Eyes

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 19: Open Your Eyes_

**Bella:**

"It was terrible!" I cried, hugging Alice then Rosalie hard as they arrived through the door.

They both clucked their tongues and hugged me back just as fiercely. "It's okay Bella, men are just natural born shitheads," Rosalie soothed, stroking my hair. Alice nodded ferociously in agreement.

It was the morning after Edward and my dinner, and Alice and Rosalie demanded to know the details when I phoned them up. We'd decided to meet up at Edward (and I guess my) place, since it was the most spacious.

All the boys were out having some 'guy bonding time' (whatever that is) since Emmett spontaneously decided that he wanted to get to know Edward better if I was going to live with him.

--

_This morning: 7AM…_

"Are you serious?" I guffawed.

"Yup, I want to get to know your new _acquaintance_, Edmund is it?" were Emmett's exact words when he called at seven AM.

"Not Ed_mund_, Ed_ward_," I had yawned. "And anyways, I don't really know if the term 'acquaintances' is appropriate for Edward and my relationship."

"Not acquaintances?!" Emmett had roared. "If you're not _acquaintances_ then what are you? Lovers? Confidants? _Bed buddies_?"

"No!" I'd screeched, throwing a pillow across the room. "You forgot _friends_, you dope! We're _just_ friends."

"Friends…" Emmett tested the word out. "Does he grope your ass like that Newton kid did?"

"No, Edward is a perfect gentleman when he lifts me by my ass," I yawned. Unfortunately, due to my drowsiness, the wording came out all wrong.

"You're sleeping with him?" Emmett cried.

"I meant during skating lifts. Stop overreacting," I'd replied flatly.

"Are you still a—"

"My virginity is still intact, thank you very much," I added, before he could finish his question.

"Good, you had me worried there. Anyways, tell Edmund, I mean Edwin, I mean Ed_ward_ to be ready by eight. Jazz and I need to get to know the guy better, especially with the new…erm…_circumstances_."

"I don't know, Emmett. He's been getting up before five all week to make it to practice and today's supposed to be his _one_ day to sleep in… I'd hate to wake him," I explained cautiously.

"The dude can sleep all day after we're done with him," Emmett pressed.

I sighed. "Alright, I'll see what I can do." I pressed the end call button on the phone and placed it back into the charger.

Reluctantly, I pushed off the covers and shivered when the morning chill swept across my bare arms. Grumbling to myself about how unreasonable Emmett was being, I knocked on Edward's door.

No answer.

I knocked again and there was still no answer.

"Edward, it's me. I'm coming in." I twisted the knob and when the door opened, was met by a very disturbing sight.

There lying besides Edward was a blonde with boobs the size of Texas, buck naked. I shrieked in surprise and ran back out the door, shutting it tightly behind me.

"Bella?" I heard Edward's muffled voice from behind the door.

"I'm out here," I called.

"What are you doing out there?"

"I wanted to ask you something," I hollered so that he could hear me through the wall.

"Then why are you out there?"

"I don't know if you noticed but there's kind of, err, someone in there with you…" I trailed off in embarrassment.

"Oh," he uttered. Had he not noticed? If it were a different situation I would have been laughing my ass off. "You can come in now."

"I'd rather not," I hedged, but entered his room with my eyes close again anyways.

"You can open your eyes, Bella," Edward said, annoyed.

"Is she—" I started to ask whether or not the girl beside him was covered, but he interrupted.

"Yes, she's covered."

I opened them. Edward now had a pair of sweats on, but his chest was still bare. Unconsciously, I gawked at it openly. His abs were so well toned and his chest was perfectly chiseled and… The girl that was beside him was now covered with a blanket. She was still lightly snoring. _I_ snorted. I couldn't believe that she'd managed to sleep through all our hollering.

"When the hell did _she_ get here?" I hissed. When we came home last night it was just me and him. He couldn't have picked up anybody unless he went back out…

"After you went to bed I went out and… err… one thing kind of let to another," was his pathetic explanation. **(EPOV: Rather you left me with a hard on and I had to find someone to relieve it)**

"Whatever," I said, still disgusted. I was no longer remorse about waking him on his 'day off'. "Emmett called and apparently, he wants to get to know you better."

Edward raised one brow. I nodded as if to say: _'Yeah right, I know.'_

"So, be ready by eight because that's when he and Jasper are coming to pick you up," I continued. Not thinking before I spoke I added, "I kind of want you to make a good impression. So I'm gonna give you some pointers."

Edward's eyebrows shot up to his hairline and I _swear_, he was doing one of those 'half smirks'. Still, being the tomato I am, I blushed anyways.

His head whipped over to his clock that read seven thirty. "Aw shit," I saw him mouth.

"So throw some clothes on, brush your teeth, get rid of _her_, and Emmett should be down here in half an hour," I cemented on a cheerful tone as I sauntered out the door.

"Oh, by the way," I stopped mid-saunter. "We're going to have to figure out some system so that _this_ doesn't happen again," I said, pointing to the blonde (who was still sleeping strong through our entire conversation).

Cute as it was, Edward actually blushed at _that_ comment.

--

_Back to the present…_

"—he even pulled out my chair for me when the waiter got us our table!" Alice 'oohed' and 'awwed' as I recounted the details of dinner with Edward the night before. Rosalie sat with a perfectly calm expression on her face as if we were talking about the weather.

"Wait he did that _and_ he opened the car door for you?" Alice inquired.

"Yes! And when the waiter gave us a table in the center of the restaurant, he paid him extra for _something more private_. We ended up getting a dark little booth in the corner," I recounted dreamily.

"Okay then… Why did you say it was 'terrible' then, sounds like it went pretty damn well to me," Rosalie sniffed, fluffing her hair.

"That's just it!" I wailed. Both of their faces scrunched up in confusion.

"What do you mean? I wish Emmett was more of a gentleman sometimes. He _still_ takes me to Chuckee Cheese for _our_ date nights. I bet that if I agreed to it he would have wanted to get married at the place! The pizza there is _drowned_ in grease and I had to keep Emmett's temper in check after some kid stole his tickets!" Rosalie said, clearly exasperated.

"Shh, let Bella talk," Alice hissed, keeping eye contact with me while Rosalie continued her rant.

"I'm just like all the others!" I cried, putting my forehead in my hands.

"All the other what? Stop being so cryptic," Rosalie complained.

"_All the other girls_!" I blubbered.

"Ohhhh," they nodded simultaneously.

"So you're afraid because you're attracted to him but you don't want to be like all the other skanks that throw themselves at him?" Alice clarified solemnly.

I nodded and buried my face back into my hands.

"But—" Alice continued loudly. "You're _not_ like the others. Bella, _trust me_, if anything, you _definitely_ aren't a skank," she winked. Rosalie giggled into the palm of her hand.

"So, just for the heck of it," Rosalie smiled devilishly. "How sexy do you think he is on a one to ten scale?"

It was always customary for us to rate men behind their backs.

"Ten," I moaned.

Both girls gasped in unison.

"Ten?!" Alice shrieked. "No boy has ever rated a ten on the Bella Swan sex scale!"

"I know."

"Wow," Rosalie whispered.

The next few moments were followed by an awed silence.

"Well, I think you should go for it," Alice declared. "He is pretty yummy if I do say, and think of how utterly romantic it would be if you two got together! The whole thing would be like a fairy tale! Two pair skaters meet, fall in love along the way, and win Olympic gold," her eyes shined. "I can just see it!"

"Don't be so naïve, Alice," I rolled my eyes. "I know very well that Edward Cullen doesn't commit. Just this morning I accidentally walked in on him and some girl he picked up."

"He could change," Alice shot back. "Give him time."

Rosalie snorted. "Men never change. Have I told you that Emmett _still_ brings me to Chuckee Cheese for—"

"Date night! YES WE KNOW," Alice and I threw up our hands at the same time.

"I don't want to be negative, honey," Rosalie started. "But I don't know about Edward… He's obviously been around the block a lot and I'd hate to see you get hurt," she shifted in her seat uneasily. "Plus, I don't know if I'd ever escape Emmett's constant bitching at home."

I nodded, appreciating her honesty.

"He does have his moments though," I defended Edward.

Alice nodded. "He's taken care of our little Bella over here pretty well," she said, patting my shoulder.

I hated being referred to as the 'baby' of the group. I just turned old enough to drink—something the rest of the group already achieved at least a year ago. The second youngest was Alice, who was practically a year older than me.

"So what else happened?" Rosalie pressed, shaking my arm.

"Okay, well he took me to this restaurant; I can't remember the name, it was some Italian thing that was hard to pronounce…" I mused. "Anyways, he was just really sweet through the whole thing. When I ordered the mushroom ravioli he told the waiter that he'd have the same, and then he complimented my choice when the food came!" I gushed.

Alice sighed dreamily while Rosalie smiled tentatively.

"Then, you know me… We kind of fought over the bill and he said (quote): 'Really, it's _my_ honor to be having dinner with such a beautiful girl'!"

Alice's eyes softened and she murmured an 'aww' while Rosalie muttered 'sappy ass'.

"So then—of course—_that_ literally left me speechless and who was I to argue afterwards? So then the car ride back was nice, and I found out that he had the same taste in music as me!" I exclaimed excitedly.

Alice rolled her eyes, she's always wanted to 'expand my horizons' to the pop songs she listens to, but I've always loved classical movie-like pieces.

"Claire de Lune, Debussy, just happened to come on and we both started humming along to it! He said it was one of his favorites," I babbled, beaming.

"There are actually other people in the world that listens to that crap—I mean stuff?" Alice corrected herself quickly.

"Yes. There are," I placed my hands back on my hips. "So we got back to _our_ place," I paused, the whole 'our' part felt awkward slipping across my tongue, "and he bid me goodnight and kissed me on the cheek saying he had a great time on our non-date," I rushed out the last bit.

"Non-date?" Rosalie questioned.

"I kind of stressed out on the 'non' part before we went out…" I didn't need to be a mind reader to know that they were thinking that that statement was '_so Bella-like'_'.

"Were his lips soft?" Alice interrupted randomly.

If it was possible, I may have turned even redder. "Really soft— like marshmallows."

She giggled and shook her head. "Our Bella has her first crush," she sang.

I shook my head side to side. "Well, I wouldn't call it that… He was so great last night but reminded me of how much of an asshole he was this morning when I saw him in bed with…"

They nodded understandingly.

"Well it doesn't really matter," I sighed hopelessly. "It's not like he would even choose me over all the other girls… I mean, he can have practically any girl he wants…" I trailed off.

"Hey! Hey!" Rosalie said suddenly fierce. "Don't talk like that, any man would be _lucky_ to get _you_."

"Stop it!" I slapped her playfully. "You're just saying that because you're my best friend!"

I sighed wistfully, wishing that I could believe Rosalie.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Our Bella is (finally) learning the art of men!! If any of you thought it was a little abrupt, it really wasn't. Ever since Bella met Edward, she's been attracted to him—she just didn't realize it until she had dinner with him. Well, food can do that to people C:

Hopefully this all made sense... I'm open to questions. Thanks.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	20. Come On In

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

Err, some of you guys are disappointed in Edward's 'progress'. I'm trying not to make it too abrupt like: 'I woke up this morning and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I was in love with Isabella Swan'... Try to understand that it's a PROCESS and that Edward has been going about his indecent ways for YEARS now. Please no worries--it IS coming along. Sit back and enjoy the right :)

Anywho...We're in the 20s now for chapter number! YEAH BOI! (If you didn't notice OTI (On Thin Ice) surpassed 50,000 words! Whew! For those of you that have been sticking with me since the beginning, can you believe it? Haha, we're not even to the juicy part yet! *winks*)

This is a rundown of EPOV of his encounter with Bella. I don't mean to be repetitive (repeating the events from chp. 19), but I feel like it's the turning point, so I wanted to show you Edward's perspective.

* * *

_Chapter 20: Come On In_

**Edward:**

Isabella Swan.

I'd woken up this morning, to the all too familiar feeling of a girl's breasts pressed against my side. My first thought was: 'Please let this be Bella', but when I opened my eyes, it was just another typical slut like any other morning. This one particular one had a trail of drool running down her chin.

Then my brain started running again and I remembered the events of last night. There was the horrific ballet experience that made me shudder at the thought, but it was followed by a dinner that made all the pain worth the gain. I limited myself to one tender kiss on the cheek before Bella retreated to her room for the night. After I made sure she was sound asleep, I snuck back out to find the nearest skank to relieve my throbbing hard on she'd left me with. Fortunately, I didn't have to drive far, the nearest club had girls swarming over me and all I had to do was point my finger and pick one.

Nonetheless, waking with someone other than the girl I had dinner with was quite a disappointing feeling.

She had been so entrancing during our dinner—it seemed like I couldn't get enough of her. Throughout the whole night I felt as if I'd been under her magic spell…Except this one didn't disappear at midnight.

Even through intercourse with the _other_ girl, I almost moaned Bella's name aloud when I fantasized it was her giving me the blow job. Just thinking her name made me cum fast. Unfortunately, this sent mixed signals to what's her face who was sucking—she was extremely pleased with herself for making me come to my release so quickly.

First of all, Bella was articulate—something I didn't come around very often. It was even rarer to find someone who had the perfect balance of coherency and beauty.

It always got on my nerves when girls said couldn't refrain from saying 'like' in every sentence. 'Like' was one of the words I most despised. I'd heard one too many: '_Oh my god, _like_ what are you like doing tonight?' 'Are you like totally like serious?' _

Gah, one day I'd go mad.

If anything, I don't think Bella even uttered a single 'like' throughout the entire night. Gotta love woman like that…

Every word that she said and every gesture that she made seemed to have a deeper meaning behind it. I wondered what was going on in the back of her mind.

She seemed to enjoy herself last night. Well, I certainly hoped she did. Normally, I didn't give a shit whether or not a girl _enjoyed _her night with me. Maybe it was because I always _knew_ the answer—yes (duh).

I'd never doubted my ability to please women, and the fact that I wasn't sure if Bella had a good time made me uneasy.

The blonde next to me rolled over, and her hand landed on my chest with a thump. Damn, the girl was so bony that her knuckles poked out and could probably slice through me. Oomph.

_Knock, knock, knock._ Someone was knocking on my door. Huh, probably my maid, Olga. She always comes for some morning lovin' and throws a bitch fit when I'm already with someone else.

Whoever behind the door knocked three more times—tsk, tsk, impatience. I internally smirked; Olga must have been in dire need of some release this morning. Whatever, making her wait a few hours wouldn't hurt.

The door knob started turning, so I closed my eyes and wrapped my arms around the girl beside me. Hopefully Olga would saunter in ready for sex, but end up finding me (asleep) with someone else. If only I didn't have to close my eyes to pretend to be sleeping—I'd love to see the outrageous expression on her face.

"Edward, it's me. I'm coming in," a soft voice—that was most definitely not Olga's gruff one—said.

Shit, the voice belonged to Bella! Abruptly I whipped my arm from around blondie's waist and flung them behind my head. Blondie grumbled and tried to latch back onto my arm, but I scooted _way_ over to the other side.

The door creaked open, and Bella tentatively stepped in. I closed my eyes, pretending to sleep.

A shriek erupted from Bella, and I heard the footsteps of someone running out of the room. She must have seen blondie… Whoops, kinda forgot about her.

Once she was back on the other side of the door, I called her name. "Bella?" I pretended to be groggy—like she just woke me up.

"I'm out here," she called. I almost laughed out loud at the alarm in her voice.

"What are you doing out there?"

"I wanted to ask you something," she yelled so that I could hear her.

She wanted to ask me something? Was she going to admit her undying love and inevitable attraction towards me and ask me if I felt the same way? I sat up, suddenly very interested to hear what she had to say.

"Then why are you out there?" I asked curiously.

I hope she had some kind of epiphany last night during dinner. For some reason when I was with her, it was easier to turn on 'sweet, charming Edward' and switch off 'cocky ass Edward'—if she liked 'sweet, charming Edward' then I _could_ murder the cocky ass side… It'd be worth it… Hmm…

"I don't know if you noticed but there's kind of, err, someone in there with you…" my ears strained to hear her, as her voice had lowered.

I looked down and sure enough, Blondie was still on my left, slowly inching her way towards me. Gah. I scooted off the bed disgustedly and threw on the nearest pair of pants in sight—sweats.

"Oh," I said dumbly. "You can come in now," I hollered, as I finished tying the strings.

"I'd rather not," she called, I stifled a chuckle. Nevertheless, the doorknob twisted to the right and the door slowly inched open as Bella hesitantly stepped in. I rolled my eyes at her melodramatics. When she got close enough for me to see her face, I saw that her eyes were squeezed shut and she was maneuvering into the room blindly.

"You can open your eyes, Bella," I rolled my _own_ eyes at her silly antics.

They remained shut. I heaved a sigh in response.

"Is she—"Bella started

"Yes, she's covered." I tapped my fingers impatiently on the wooden bedside table.

Finally, she opened her eyes, revealing her deep chocolate eyes. Huh, I'd missed them overnight.

They widened when they caught sight of me. She gawked openly at my build, shirtless, and I suppressed another smirk. Bella was just so sensitive that she would call me out for being 'arrogant' or 'cocky' if I did a gesture as small as _that_. Her continued raking over my body, lingering at my abs. Slyly, I flexed my stomach muscles, making my _sex_—I mean _six_ pack more defined.

"When the hell did _she_ get in here?" she hissed, her eyes trailing towards Blondie who I'd covered with a blanket.

"After you went to bed I went out and… err… one thing kind of let to another," I ran my hands through my hair sheepishly. I would have loved to tell her that she left me with a huge erection and I had to find someone to help me deflate it—but I never liked giving girls the upper hand.

"Whatever," she dismissed my lame excuse with the flick of her wrist. "Emmett called," she started. My ears perked up—Mr. Overprotective called? –"And apparently, he wants to get to know you better."

I chuckled on the inside. Dealing with Emmett was probably tougher than it would be to deal with Mr. Swan—Bella's _real_ dad.

She sighed and shook her head, pitying the position I was in.

"So, be ready by eight because that's when he and Jasper are coming to pick you up," she instructed. "I kind of want you to make a good impression… So I'm gonna give you some pointers."

I raised my eyebrows—she wanted _me_ to make a good impression on Emmett? I thought she wouldn't care, unless…

Noticing her suggestive words, she blushed and shot me a look that said: '_Don't go there_'.

My head whipped back to the alarm clock on my side that read seven thirty. Shit, I only had half an hour to try to neaten my hair. I don't even think three hours would be enough time to tame it.

"So throw some close on—" she eyed my chest again wistfully—"Get rid of _her_, and Emmett should be here in half an hour."

I nodded obediently, starting to make my way towards my closet.

"Oh by the way—" I turned around. "We're going to have to figure out some system so that _this_ doesn't happen again," Bella pointed towards what's her face… Who to my great amusement was still sleeping like a baby through our entire conversation. She could probably sleep through a tsunami, earthquake, and airplane engines without mufflers put together.

I think I felt my cheeks heating up—a strange tingle of embarrassment was freeing butterflies in my stomach.

I hadn't felt that way since my seventh grade science teacher made me apologize in front of the _entire_ class to Susan Smith for slapping her ass as she passed by. At the end of the day, she'd come up to me, practically begging for more—but I'd promptly refused her. She was the only one who'd _ever_ gotten me caught for my antics.

Well, the only one besides Bella who seemed to have it on her daily agenda.

Without any warning, my bedroom door swung open and Olga pranced in, wearing the skimpiest lingerie I'd ever laid my eyes on. And trust me, I've seen a lot in my days. It was bright red and practically translucent. She was holding an armful of my laundry in her arms.

Olga stepped in, extending her completely bare leg. Halfway into the room, she looked around, finally noticing Bella and Blondie (who was still snoozing).

Bella was looking at the ceiling, and shifting awkwardly from side to side, while I was candidly shooting annoyed glares at Olga.

"Sorry," Olga sniffed—she didn't sound the least bit apologetic. "I was just going to drop off Mr. Cullen's clothes that just got out of the dryer and keep him some company, but apparently, he's already got his hands full."

She glared and Bella, then at the sleeping form wrapped up in sheets on my bed.

"Well, I'll be going now," she walked out of the room, trying to hold onto the little piece of dignity she still carried.

* * *

It was five minutes before eight and Bella was sitting on the kitchen counter, drilling me on how to behave around Emmett.

"And you know that whole sense of humor thing you had going on when you called Emmett out on being my dad?" she asked. I nodded. "It's a little too early for that… Save it for when you guys become 'homeboys' or whatever guy's call their guy best friends."

"So… If he invites me over to play on his Wii and chat, give him a good game, but let him win in the very end when we're neck in neck?" I clarified.

Bella nodded approvingly. "Don't lose right away though; give Emmett a run for his money first. He can smell an intentional defeat from a mile away. He'll just think you're a kiss ass," she warned. "Not that you aren't..." I think I may have heard her mutter.

I sighed, really, I hated losing. It just cramped my style.

"Obviously Mr. Big Shot, Edward Cullen doesn't like losing—but it really helps getting on Emmett's good graces if you let him win."

The doorbell rang, I looked at my watch and it flashed 7:58. He was two minutes early.

"Oh, and ask him about his work at the gym that he manages," Bella rushed out the last minute pieces of wisdom.

"Let's get this show on the road," I flashed a gleaming smile in her direction. Was it just me or did she seem to soften a little? Hmm, just two days ago when I tried to dazzle her it didn't work. Had something changed?

I sat casually on the couch as Bella made her way to the door.

"Hey Em, it's good to see you," she greeted her brother sweetly.

"Yeah, yeah," Emmett waved his hand superficially. "As much as I love you lil' sis, I'm here to see Cullen."

I gulped at his serious tone.

"Hey man," I stood and went over to fist bump Emmett. Since he was so big and well, muscled, I could barely see Jasper behind him. "Hey Jasper," I nodded the universal man-nod to him.

"Let's go buddy," Emmett slapped my shoulder, a little hard, but I'm sure it wasn't intentional.

As the three of us headed out, I saw Alice and Rosalie making their way up Bella's front steps.

"I'll be back to pick you up when I drop Edward back off, sweetheart," Emmett kissed Rosalie's forehead gently.

"Same goes for you, babe," Jasper squeezed Alice's arm adoringly.

Both girls giggled and skipped the rest of the stairs with a brand new light shining on their face.

I knew girls fawned over me, but it made me wonder: _'Could I ever get a girl to look at me like _that_?'_ There was a fine line between love and lust.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Hello my lovelies! Edward's finally catching on!!! WOOT! The next chapter will be Edward's day with Emmett and Jasper! Bring on the inquisitions! ...Just a warning, it might be a little late, because I'm a little behind on my writing. If it is [late], I'll update it over the weekend (I normally don't update weekends)

If you noticed, I added a few things into this chapter that weren't in the last— let's just say that in the last chapter, Bella left out some parts of her trip to Edward's room out of her flashback. (At least, that'll be the cover story C;)

**Finally, last thing (I almost forgot to put this!), I have a new plot twist brewing, and I was wondering if you would rather have it involve, Victoria, Tanya, or some random character that I'd make up. Let me know with a REVIEW! Thanks, your opinion really counts! **

Reviews are better than Edward's sex—I mean _six_ pack! Well, actually I'm not sure about that. Leave one anyways though! Thanks.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	21. Sign It

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

Thanks for all your comments, and sorry for the delay.

* * *

_Chapter 21: Sign It _

**Edward:**

"Get in the back," Emmett ordered gruffly. He plopped down in the driver's seat while Jasper sat shotgun. I felt as if I were being led to prison or something.

As I slid into the backseat of Emmett's Jeep Wrangler, squeals erupted from inside my apartment. Obviously the girls were keyed up about _something_.

Emmett sighed wistfully. "Damn, I'd do anything to know what the girl's talk about when we aren't around."

Jasper nodded in agreement with the same lusty look in the eyes.

"My dad knows a guy who specializes in these micro audio recorders. I could probably get my hands on one…" I hinted.

Emmett's eyes widened and a devilish grin spread across his face. "Are you shitting me, man? That'd be great! I mean, girls say they love and all, and it's not that I don't believe Rose, but sometimes—"

"—you want to know what they keep from you," Jasper finished. "I've always wondered what Alice thinks when we play military." There was a dreamy faraway look in his eyes.

"Too much information man," Emmett held up his hands and whistled. "Or as Rose says: Omigod stop, TMI."

I chuckled at his impersonation of Rosalie's voice. It was quite accurate.

"How do you know if they kiss and tell?" I asked curiously.

"They do. What else could they be talking about at all their sleepovers?"

I nodded, pleased with myself. Jasper had an impressed look on his face, and by the excited grin on Emmett's, it was obvious that I'd gotten off on the right foot with them. Hmm, Carlisle could probably get one of those recorders in my hands in less than a week. Sometimes it was nice having the 'Cullen Connection'. Just say the name: 'Carlisle Cullen' and the deal will be sealed.

"So where are we headed?" I asked cautiously.

"My place. I was thinking we could discuss the unfavorable circumstances over a good natured Wii match or two," Emmett said through narrowed eyes—almost as if he were saying: _Yup you know what I mean, punk._ Obviously whatever good graces I'd had just flew out the window when it came to Bella.

Jasper punched Emmett's shoulder half playfully and grimaced. "What Emmett here means by _that_, is that we might have to work out some 'Terms and Conditions' with you… Maybe sign a release form or two? I mean, since we're technically 'releasing' Bella to your care…"

"Possibly a few contracts. You know, to make sure that we're clear on the _rules_," Emmett hinted.

Release forms? _Contracts_? Who said anything about _those_?

Emmett opened his mouth to protest, but before any words got out, Jasper elbowed his side. "Remember what Alice and Rosalie said earlier," he hissed.

I pretended I hadn't heard a thing.

"Sounds good," I forced a smile. Really I wasn't looking forward to the background checks and endless inquisitions. I'd just answer the questions that they asked—if they don't ask then there's no point in bringing it up. And as for whatever 'contracts' they had in store for me? I'd sign my name on the line for the conditions that were within reason. Although I highly doubted it would be successful, maybe I could negotiate with those two.

I took another look at both guy's faces that were set and determined—okay, making negotiations would be harder than I thought.

"I just wanted to warn you beforehand," Emmett started cheerful, "That if you lay one finger on Bella, I'll pound you to the ground and make it so that your hospital bills are so high that even your rich daddy won't be able to cover the cost of all the damage I'd do."

At this, I made a face. It wasn't exactly the _threat_ that displeased me; it was more of Emmett's size. He was huge. Even as a guy like me probably had no chance to take him down. Plus, Jasper would most likely be flanking on his side.

I didn't really appreciate his snide comment on Carlisle but decided to let it slide. I don't think his intentions were to insult my foster father, but more of to make a point. Well, point taken:

Me flirty with Bella = Me pummeled by Emmett

Really, it was all the simplest of math.

I chuckled nervously, hoping that he was at least half joking. I mean, Carlisle had _a lot_ of money. He would have to do some serious 'pummeling' to make it so that I can't afford the medical bill. I wonder if someone would die of exhaustion if they kept beating me up until I couldn't afford it. Well, hopefully _that_ question is never answered.

"Ha-ha, Emmett here is just the biggest joker, isn't he?" Jasper laughed through gritted teeth. Obviously Alice had given him a serious lecture on not harassing me too much. Huh, of course I appreciated it, but I don't need some woman to fight my battles. Maybe it's a blessing though—it was quite obvious that Alice had Jasper wrapped around her skinny little fingers, and having her on my side would be quite an advantage.

"Yeah hilarious," I mumbled sarcastically.

An awkward silence lasted the next five minutes or so. It felt more like an hour. I wasn't sure if I liked the awkward silence or the ongoing threats more with Emmett.

"We're here," Emmett finally said, pulling up at a tall apartment complex. The outside of the building was an ordinary grayish-pink color, and it seemed to be on the verge of needing to be repainted.

"It's not quite as nice as your place—obviously," Emmett sneered. "But Rose and I manage."

I wasn't sure how to reply to that. Jasper shot me an apologetic look.

After he parked, Emmett undid his seatbelt and zoomed out of the car in one quick motion, slamming the behind him. The force exerted was so hard that the entire car rattled. At this he gave me a pointed look: _You don't want to mess with me_.

Jasper undid his own buckle hastily. "He's not normally like this. Only when it comes to Bella," he explained. I looked peered at Emmett through the window who had a scowl on his face; arms crossed, and was tapping his foot impatiently.

"It's alright, I understand," I chuckled.

"He's gonna challenge you to a Wii match, make sure you—"

"Give him a good game but let him win in the end. Hell, I know. Bella already gave me the rundown of the 'do' and 'don't' list," I cut him off.

"And ask him about his—"

"Gym. Bella already told me," I interrupted again.

He nodded, probably surprised that I'd been _so_ proactive.

I got out of Emmett's car, but didn't slam the door hard. There was no need to make him despise me more than he already did.

I followed closely behind Emmett and Jasper as they jogged up the stairs. Emmett's apartment was on the fourth floor, so it was quite a long flight. Secretly, I think they were testing my endurance to see if I had the stamina to protect Bella. Luckily, I jog daily, and didn't even break a sweat trying to keep with them.

When Emmett realized that I _wasn't_ lagging behind like he expected, he gave Jasper an annoyed glance and sped up. If anything, I think they were _trying_ to find something wrong with me._Well,_ _good luck with that_, I internally smirked.

When we finally reached Emmett's floor, all three of us were starting to run short of breath. Though due to his silence, I think I passed their test.

Jasper fetched the key from under the potted plant by Emmett's door and unlocked it.

The inside of Emmett's apartment was just what I expected it to be. The interior was crowded, with stacks of papers on every table, and boxes that were piled up lining the walls, but it didn't look messy for some reason. There were flower arrangements at every windowsill—probably Rosalie's doing.

Jasper started fishing through all the stacks of papers on each table, seemingly trying to find one.

"Emmett man, you need to get all this shit organized," Jasper nagged.

"Not you too!" Emmett cried, exasperated. "Rosie's been on my back about it for the past week."

"I can't find the contract we typed up earlier," Jasper sighed, throwing his hands up.

Emmett waved his hand dismissively. "It's somewhere in one of those piles."

I stood, leaning against the door watching them amusedly.

"Found it!" Jasper said, waving a piece of paper above his head. "Now where was that pen…?"

"I got one," Emmett handed me a blue pen with the words: _Dr. Smith: Pediatric Services. (632)-333-9800. _

"Thanks," I said dryly, taking the pen.

"Here," Jasper handed me the contract and ushered me to a chair. "Emmett and I just wanted to make sure that our intentions are clear, as soon as possible. Please read the contract aloud—take note of the bolded words—and sign below on the dotted line." His tone was all business.

Emmett stared at me expectantly. I looked down at the fancily typed up script.

"_I, Edmund Cullen, do solemnly swear (of affirm) that I will __**faithfully **__**provide**__ for Isabella Swan. I will to the best of my ability, __**preserve**__, __**protect**__, and __**defend**__ her. I will __**never**__sexually harass her in __**any**__ way. This includes both __**physically**__ and __**mentally**__. If I do, I give __**Emmett **__**Swan**__ and __**Jasper **__**Whitlock**__ permission to __**beat**__ the __**living **__**daylights**__ out of me," _I recited.

Below the formally written text was a line for me to sign my name.

I chuckled when I saw that they didn't even get my name right. They seemed to have copied some of the phrases from the 'Presidential Oath'.

"Hey, we didn't get a lot of time to whip this baby up," Emmett defended his precious paper.

"Uhh, it's just that my name is Edward, not Edmund," I pointed to the mistake on the document.

Emmett slapped his forehead and snatched the pen out of my hands. He scribbled out the 'mund' and wrote in 'ward' before shoving the pen back into my hand.

"Any questions?" Jasper asked pleasantly.

Really, if I were signing with one of Carlisle's business contractors I would have had _tons _of questions—but this was just some stupid oath that Emmett had based off of the presidential oath.

There were a lot of black and white areas in the contract that I could surely work around. Could I make any sexual _advancements_ with Bella if she _wanted _it? That wouldn't be a considered a violation, would it? Would mind-fucking be considered 'mentally harassing'? If they wanted to make a point in this contract, they should have been clearer about the 'holes' that were in it.

Nonetheless, I slapped a smile on my face. "No questions. This sounds quite reasonable."

"It better," Emmett muttered.

Without hesitating, I signed the dotted line with flourish—even looping the 'E' on my first name. Emmett was keeping a close eye on my fingers making sure that the ones on my left hand (the non-writing one) weren't crossed.

"I'm glad we have all reached and a mutual understanding," Jasper sighed, relieved. Obviously he had been the one on the other side of Emmett's bitching about me. Poor guy.

"Oh, before I forget, Emmett promised Rose and Alice that he would say something to you… What was that _thing_ that you have to say?" Jasper elbowed Emmett, who was scowling like a little kid without and ice cream cone.

"Thank you for helping Bella when I am unable," Emmett muttered quickly.

I could have said that I didn't hear him, and made him redo his statement of gratitude, but since I'm practically an angel from heaven, I didn't.

"You're welcome," I said simply. "It's really, my pleasure," I added.

Emmett's eyes widened and he frowned at my poor selection of words.

"I mean I wouldn't use her for _that_ kind of pleasure," I took my words back quickly. "I enjoy Bella's intellectual company," I tried, lamely.

He nodded, giving me a final warning look.

"Emmett has a Wii over here, maybe you can knock his ego down a few notches and defeat his boxing winning streak," Jasper laughed nervously, trying the change the subject. His expression that said: 'Please don't beat him. I don't want Emmett to throw a competitive hissy fit' contracted his words.

"We'll see," Emmett grinned, slapping me on the back.

I boxed a few rounds with Emmett, following Bella and Jasper's instruction. For the first few rounds, I made it so that we were tied even. Carlisle had gotten me a Wii before they were even released to the public, so I'd had a lot of experience.

Finally, right before the buzzer was about to go off, I purposely mis-aimed my punch, giving Emmett the chance to knock the last few breaths out of my character who fell to the ground.

"Once again, victory goes to EMMETT!" Emmett rumbled joyously.

He patted me on the shoulder. "You played a good game, Cullen, but you can't beat the master!" he cheered.

Jasper sat on the couch, massaging his temples as if he had a headache. It looked like he had experienced one too many 'Emmett victory episodes'.

"Bella told me that you manage your own gym. Probably helps your Wii skills," I tactfully mentioned.

"Definitely, boxing takes a lot out of your arms, but mine here," he flexed, "can just keep going and going."

I was a little miffed at his boasting, but tried to look impressed.

He nodded. "You know what Edward—" I couldn't help but notice that he wasn't calling me by my last name, _and_ he got the last part right. —"You may not be so bad after all."

Score!

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

You may have notice that this one was delayed by a few days. I'm uber sorry for that! I was just a little stuck, but no worries, the next plot twist WILL BE coming, and the creative juices are flowing... Please don't expect an update until TUESDAY--and the daily update should resume then. Also, I'm kind of in a rush, trying to get this chapter out, so it might have a few mistakes. PLEASE let me know about those, and I'll fix them right away!

+For those of you that enjoy the 'figure skating scenes' i have LOADS of those coming up, so please be patient!

Thank you to those people who left me a review saying whether they wanted Tanya, Victoria, or some random character to be the next dramarama. If you haven't, please let me know!

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	22. Cue the Swoon

_**Wow, you guys are the best. I truly didn't expect so many responses to that note because all I really wanted to do was vent, but thank you ALL for your kind and encouraging words. **_

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**FYI: If some of y'all haven't heard the song 'Love Story' (not taylor swift ;)) that Bella and Edward are skating to, please check my profile for the link. **

* * *

_Chapter 22: Cue the Swoon_

The boys were due back at any moment. Rosalie and Alice were brain storming ideas for Edward and my skating costumes to the music 'Love Story'. They were discussing the color theme of our corresponding outfits.

Unsurprisingly, somewhere amidst the discussion I'd spaced out into my own world.

My thoughts involuntarily drifted to Edward—it seemed like he was all that was on my mind now. Definitely a bad sign. Nonetheless, I hoped that he was alright. Emmett could be a bit on the overprotective side, and hopefully the death threats would be kept to a minimum. He'd always felt the need to be over the top when it came to me, especially after Charlie kicked me out.

I knew that he was a little jealous of Edward. His reasons for being were completely absurd though.

Emmett had always thought of it as his obligation to take care of me—especially since I'm his _younger_ (baby) sister. Even before Renee died, he was always there helping me out with homework in middle school (he tried his hardest, but most of the time just confused me further), to explain why boys were idiots in high school (which made me just sob harder), etc.

"Bella."

Therefore, maybe I shouldn't have been surprised with his attitude when he found out that _Edward_ was in a sense, my 'protector' for the moment. Really, it wouldn't have been a big deal if Emmett had enough money to support me, but since he didn't he was irrationally embarrassed.

It really put the pieces together on why Emmett immediately detested Edward so strongly.

I'm sure that even now, he was still disgruntled that I'd gone to Edward for help instead of him.

"Bella!" I snapped out of my thoughts. Alice was waving a perfectly manicured hand in front of my face.

"What?"

"Rosalie and I can't seem to agree on a color scheme," Alice huffed, glaring at Rosalie.

I sighed; _this_ behavior was so typical for them. The whole process of creating a skating costume was so complex. Rosalie and Alice liked to obsess over every last detail from the beads to the lace to the fabric material.

"I don't care what color it is—I just want simplicity," I said firmly.

"No!" Alice and Rosalie wailed simultaneously.

"Yes. I want it to be simple. The song, 'Love Story' isn't some big orchestral production. It isn't supposed to be regal either. I _don't_ want it to look like Edward and I are a king and a queen. I want us to look like we just stepped out of a casual romance film from the 1970s."

"Just a few rhinestones!" Alice pleaded.

"We'll negotiate," I offered, trying to cut the conversation short. Talking about clothes always gave me minor headaches. "End of discussion."

"No! Wait!" Rosalie pleaded. "Purple-ish gray or light aqua?" She held up two fabric swatches.

"Both are great. Light aqua might look kind of washed out on the ice though," I gave my opinion honestly.

Rosalie held both fabrics against arm to see which color matched better with my skin.

"You're so pale, that maybe the purple-gray will be better—"

"_We're_—I mean _I'm_ back!" Emmett burst through the door. Judging from high spirits, I hoped that his time with Edward went well. He looked extremely pleased—which was a good sign. That is, unless he was pleased that he beat the shit out of Edward.

"Where's Edward? You didn't do something to him…Did you?" I asked.

"And Jasper?" Alice added.

"Those two had to wait for the next elevator," Emmett explained.

"And you couldn't have waited for them?" I asked, annoyed.

"Nope, I was dying to be in the same room as this lovely goddess," he kissed Rose on the cheek.

"Stop it," Rosalie giggled.

Alice crossed her arms over her chest and heaved a sigh. I just frowned and shook my head. We were both irked that Emmett couldn't have waited for the rest of the boys.

As ridiculous as it sounded, I'd kind of missed Edward and his witty comments during the few hours he was gone. That was something I'd be keeping to myself.

"We're here," Jasper and Edward finally burst through the door.

Alice ran gracefully towards Jasper and planted a sweet kiss on his lips.

Edward eyed me expectantly. "What, no kiss for me?" he asked innocently. He was lucky that Emmett was out of earshot. With that comment it was like he was just _asking_ for to get beat up.

"You are so conceited," I rolled my eyes. Not wanting to seem entirely unfriendly, I advanced towards him and enveloped him in a hug, which he returned eagerly. I inhaled his scent and it smelled absolutely divine.

I pulled away when his hands started lingering on my ass and he sighed disappointedly. "What about the kiss?"

"Don't push your luck. You take what I give you," I laughed.

"That's not much," Edward pouted. I just laughed some more and ran my hands through his hair. My hands were surprised by the soft texture of it. His hair was so perfectly disarrayed that I had come to the conclusion that he frequently gelled it. Obviously, that was not the case. Edward Cullen's sex hair was _all natural_. Figures. Maybe it had just started staying that way since he well… _Did_ it so _much_.

"How did it go?" I finally asked.

"I did exactly what you told me to and it went great," he beamed. He took a strand of my hair and started playing with it. I think I enjoyed that much more than I should have.

I craned my neck to look up at him, he was just _that_ tall compared to me. "Thank goodness. They played nice didn't they?"

"I had to sign a few papers," Edward made a face.

"What papers?"

"It was more of an oath," he said, his face was dead serious.

"And that oath consisted of…"

"I can't sexually harass you," he winked.

I looked into his green eyes that were deep with sincerity. "Oh. Well, I don't really mind."

Right when _that_ slipped out, I felt like clamping my hand over my mouth. I couldn't believe I'd just said that. It was his damn eye's fault. I had gotten so caught up in them I hadn't even paid attention to what was tumbling out of my mouth.

Edward looked stricken for a moment, but immediately recovered. His composure made it seem like I'd just made a comment about the weather rather than saying that I _enjoyed_ his harassment. "Most women don't," he smirked, breaking the awkward tension.

I slapped him on the arm playfully.

"Hey guys," Rosalie reentered the room. A few strands of her hair were already out of place. Blame it on Emmett. "You guys are going to go practice later, right?"

I nodded.

"Well, this wasn't my idea," Rosalie sighed. "But, Emmett wants to go watch your practice. It's completely unnecessary and if we distract you then just say no, we would understand—"

"It should be fine, Rose. Tatiana absolutely loves you," I smiled genuinely.

"I was kind of hoping you would say no," Rosalie admitted. "I hate freezing my ass off in that sanctuary," she groaned.

I laughed, not taking any offense by her comment.

"I know what you mean," Edward ran his hands through his hair. "It's like hell frozen over in the arena."

Now, _his _comment was slightly offensive. I expected a reluctant attitude from _Rosalie_, but _Edward_?

"It is not!" I put my hands on my hips indignantly.

"Aw, c'mon, Bella… You've gotta admit that there are days when you get on the ice and you just want to stab it with your toe pick until there are so many holes in it that Tatiana has to call practice off because it's impossible to glide without falling into one of the potholes," Edward chuckled.

Truth be told, I _had_ had 'those days', but still managed to pull through them.

"No, I haven't because I love the ice like—"

"Cut the shit, we all know that every skater has days like those," Edward grinned.

I didn't respond to that. How was it that he always got the last word?

Rosalie was busy glancing amusedly between us.

"I'm surprised that one of you guys hasn't managed to slaughter the other yet," she remarked.

"Me too," Edward chirped. "Living together might increase the chances," he mused. Rosalie put her hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle.

I glared heatedly at both of the traitors. The frown on my face slowly faded away when I saw the crooked smile on Edward's. It was impossible not to like him when he smiled like _that_.

* * *

"Rosalie! Alice! It so nice to see you girls!" Tatiana rushed over. We had just arrived at the rink for eleven AM practice.

Tatiana absolutely adored both of my best girl friends for designing my figure skating outfits. At first she had been a little skeptical about having someone that wasn't a famous Russian designer design them, but Rose and Alice followed her every instruction.

"Who are you?" Tatiana gave Emmett a long look. "I do not allow stranger to watch Isabella and Edward practices. They come here to work."

"We've met before," Emmett glowered. "Thirteen times," he added under his breath.

"Really? Oh I don't very remember," Tatiana squinted.

"I'm Emmett Swan, Bella's brother," Emmett explained impatiently.

"Oh… Yes, I remember," Tatiana looked up at the ceiling. From her expression you could tell that she _still_ didn't remember though. "Well, Miss Swan and Mr. Cullen need focus now. Since you all such good friends, I let you sit in bleacher to watch. I no tolerate loudness—they just distract my skater, so you guys all quiet like mouse." She eyed Emmett apprehensively.

"Of course, Tatiana. Thank you," Rosalie smiled graciously.

"It's so damn cold in here," Emmett whined to Rosalie. "Will you warm me up?" he smiled deviously.

Alice and I groaned while Jasper and Edward just laughed.

"You were the one that wanted to come here," Rosalie snapped. "My skin always dries up in this cold air."

The group started to walk in the direction towards the stairs to make their way up to the bleachers. I doubted that they would be staying through the entire practice—Emmett and Alice couldn't sit still for that long.

"We'll see you guys later. Have fun_ watching_," I waved sarcastically and took Edward's arm to lead him away. Emmett eyed my arm linked around his wearily.

"What?" Edward asked indignantly. "This is _not_ a violation. She induced it! Not me!"

Immediately I pulled away and put a safe distance between us. Really, holding his arm was just a friendly gesture, but Emmett tended to overanalyze over the littlest things.

Emmett muttered something unintelligible, and Rosalie dragged him away before he could pick a fight.

"I still can't believe he made you sign a damn contract," I muttered. Secretly, I was starting to hate that contract. Touching Edward was well, in a word, _nice_. He was just so soft, and warm, and call me crazy, but I felt 'safe' around him.

"He just wants to protect you," Edward reasoned. Hearing him defend Emmett's protectiveness made my heart soar. Was he really changing for the good? A week ago I'm sure he would have been complaining on and on about how he couldn't 'get down with me' due to Emmett.

"I _really_ wouldn't mind loosening the rules up a bit though," he pondered.

"Knowing you, you'll find a way around them anyways," I joked, trying to keep my tone light hearted. On the inside I was begging for him to be formulating ways to bend around the rules. I savored every feeling of adrenaline that rushed through my body that never failed to come when we came in contact. To put it heavily, I kind of _craved_ it.

"You're probably right," he flashed me a dazzling smile. Cue the swoon.

"Aren't I always?" I returned, trying to keep my composure. Lucky for me I had at least a decade of practice with composure and hiding those 'fluttery' feelings that seemed to fly around your stomach. Ice skating was all about showing your confidence, and hiding my nerves was something I was experienced with.

"We should get on now," he suggested. "Before Tatiana plays her 'timeless' opera again. I mean, Pavarotti is great, but I can't focus on my skating when I listen to him."

I nodded in agreement and stepped onto the ice behind him. I spotted the gang sitting up high in the stand with popcorn, watching.

Emmett's roaring laugh echoed through the entire arena, and I heard Rosalie hissing at him to shut up.

"I don't really think it's fair that we're working our asses off while they sit up there watching us and eating popcorn," Edward sighed. "I have to say that out of everyone, I'm glad that _you're _down here along with me though," he added.

My heart sped up a little. "Yeah," I squeaked. "Same with you."

The fact that he was able to speak entire sentences fluidly while I could barely manage a few simple phrases made me flare with jealousy.

Tatiana emerged from the coach's room, not wearing skates, and stepped into the hockey box. Whenever she wore street shoes during coaching meant that her feet were aching.

"Today we start with 'press lift'," Tatiana instructed.

"My favorite," Edward grinned. I rolled my eyes at his immaturity.

We'd been drilling our 'press lift' over and over for the past few weeks, and it'd improved a lot. Edward and I skated around separately to gain speed, then took my firmly in his hands and lifted me above his head. I spread my legs and arms to assume the position.

"Isabella, you need arch back more," Tatiana hollered. Immediately, I arched my back further.

"Edward straighten free arm!" Edward straightened his arm, prompting me to fly higher.

I heard Alice and Rosalie buzzing in the stands, obviously excited. It was their first time seeing Edward and I skate together. I could practically feel Emmett's gaze burning holes into Edward's hand that was tightly gripping my butt. God, he had to give it a rest.

Finally, when we covered the entire length of the rink, Edward flipped me over and placed me delicately back onto the ice.

"That was our best one yet," I grinned.

"Yeah."

* * *

After practce, I went into the women's locker room to shower. When I entered, the strong stench hit me like a strong gust of wind. I couldn't believe that just weeks earlier I was planning to _sleep_ here. Rosalie and Alice trailed behind me to keep me company.

"So," Rosalie started once we made our way through the doors. "You and Edward had a little something going on out there."

I raised one of my eyebrows.

"You guys were so hot I thought the ice would melt," Alice fanned herself.

I frowned. "It's called _chemistry on ice_, and it's essential if we want to be the _best_."

"Well I think it was a little more than _that_," Rosalie giggled, elbowing Alice in the side suggestively.

"We were just working on our lifts," I said, annoyed.

They exchanged bemused glances.

"Aww c'mon, Bella. You have to admit that you're attracted to him in _that_ way," Alice winked. "Even in the last row of the stands I could feel that sexual tension radiating off of you two."

Rosalie laughed. "Even _Emmett_ could, and he's not the most perceptive at these kinds of things. He was practically fuming in his seat debating whether or not to pull you off the ice."

"Honestly there's nothing—"

I took one look at their determined faces and sighed.

"Okay, so I'm a _teensy_ little bit attracted to him, who wouldn't be? He could probably make lesbians want to go straight and guys want to go gay!" I threw my hands up into the air, exasperated.

"I knew it!" both girls squealed simultaneously.

"But—" I cut off their squealing. "There is absolutely _no way_ that Edward and I would even _consider_ going _there_."

"Why the hell not?" Alice demanded.

"Romantic relationships with skating partners never work," I grumbled. "They just screw with you emotionally, and then mess up your skating."

"How would you know? You haven't even given it a chance," Rosalie put her hands on her hips.

"I've heard all the stories," I exhaled. "You know Smith and Jones, the couple that won Nationals last year?"

Rosalie nodded and sighed dreamily. "They were just the cutest couple, on ice _and_ romantically."

"Yeah," I said flatly. "They broke up two months ago and now their chances at Olympic gold are out the window. Of course, that's all the better for _me_, since there will be one less competitor to worry about, but… You get what I mean."

"That doesn't have anything to do with you and Edward! Just because it didn't work for them, doesn't mean that the same will happen to you!" Alice defended.

"Have you ever heard of a pair skating couple that skated competitively together, pursued a romantic relationship, and had a successful skating career?" I asked.

"No, but, just try it out, Bella! You could be the first!" Rosalie pleaded.

"I really doubt that. I'm going to take a shower, be right out."

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Whew. Longest chapter yet! Since many of you requested it, I managed to add a few more Bella/Edward interactions C:

Again, for anyone who hasn't given me input on whether or not to add more Tanya/Victoria/or a random character in this story, please do so.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	23. Turning Point

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 23: Turning Point_

**Edward:**

"I'll clean up tonight and do the load of laundry. You've been doing it for the past three weeks," I declared.

Olga had quit about a month ago, after she realized that I wouldn't be sleeping with her any longer. I don't know what it was, but for some reason I had no desire to utter more than a single word to her. It was quite a relief to have her quit on her own instead of me firing her. She'd always been a lousy maid anyways.

Bella opened her mouth to protest, but I held up one finger to stop her.

We'd been living together for about a month and half now, and she was spoiling me to the extreme. During her stay, I hadn't had to wipe _one_ counter, vacuum _one_ room, cook _one_ meal, or do _one_ load of laundry. Before I could get to it, Bella would always magically appear by my side, ready to take care of it.

"Just relax tonight, okay? Tatiana worked you pretty hard at practice today."

"She worked you hard too," Bella objected.

"You were the one taking the falls, not me. Go sit in front of the couch and watch TV or something. Do something relaxing," I ordered.

"You really don't have to—I mean you're not even letting me pay you for letting me stay here," she gestured around her. "The least I can do is help out around the house."

Ah, guilt was infesting Bella's emotions again. I had noticed that she would go to extreme measures when she felt guilty.

"Fine, if you want to help me, go sit down and rest because you need it," I sighed. "I have some ice for your butt. It probably hurts like hell." Tatiana had been on our backs about perfecting the technique of our triple loop today, and it'd taken a few hard falls before we got it up to her standards.

She pouted, still not content with my intentions.

"Just let me clear the damn table and I'll go join you in a few minutes," I growled. Bella nodded hesitantly, finally getting my message, and scurried out of the room.

I watched her flounce out of the room before I started to clear the dishes off the table. Bella had cooked my favorite early—fettuccini alfredo.

It amazed me how far we'd progressed physically and emotionally since day one. We knew the little things that mattered to each other. She knew my favorite food—her alfredo, and I knew that she couldn't stand the smell, texture, or taste of broccoli.

We'd even created our own daily routine.

On weekday mornings she'd come into my room and wake me up at four thirty. She would then leave, and head downstairs to do who knows what. By the time I got downstairs, she'd have a bagel with the cream cheese spread exactly the way I liked it on the table, along with a glass of milk.

That's right, milk. Tatiana had put me on the same milk, diluted fruit juice, and water restriction as she had with Bella. We kept each other on track, making sure that the other didn't stray from the strict orders.

After I'd finish my bagel, Bella would already be standing by the door, with two bottles of water in her hand because I would always forget my own, waiting. It always made my heart warm when she took care of the little things that I always forgot. Bella would always pack an extra pair of gloves in my suitcase in case they got soaked during practice or prepare a sandwich for my snack. She was one of the few people in this greed infested world who actually gave a shit about someone besides themselves.

I would then drive us over to the rink and we'd make small talk, asking each other how we slept, what we wanted to work on today, and other random topics.

In between practices, when we went to grab a bite to refuel our energy, we would just talk. We had _a lot_ of time to talk. We talked when we jogged together, headed to Subway, grabbed a protein shake—pretty much when we weren't skating we were pretty much talking.

I learned a lot about Bella this way. The first few conversations would always start out uncomfortable and forced, but gradually she started opening up to me little by little.

What I was most interested in, was what her life was like before she'd met me, but that was the subject that she was the least comfortable to discuss. We often broached the subject, but never got into it.

One of the few pieces of her history that she'd volunteered was that after high school, her father had promptly kicked her out of the house. Apparently, she had announced that she wouldn't be continuing her education and that in its place she would pursue her figure skating career. This, of course could make any parent furious.

I was lucky that Esme and Carlisle respected my decision to bring my education to a standstill in order to live out my dreams _first_—there were certain conditions though, and I'd promised that I'd go to college after I finished loose ends with the ice.

Nonetheless, we rarely touched on such serious matters. Mostly we stuck to safer questions like: 'What's your favorite ice cream?' or 'What did you think of yesterday's ballet class?'

I tried my hardest to break down her walls that she used to shield her true feelings from me, but it was a long and slow process.

Besides our daily routine, Bella had also set up a system so that she'd know if I had a girl over.

She had bought one of those door hangers that said 'SAFE TO COME IN!' on one side and 'DO NOT ENTER—IT MAY BE HAZARDOUS TO YOUR HEALTH!' on the other. It was ridiculously pink and frilly and I always cringed when I saw it there—hanging innocently on my door.

The only good thing about the damn sign was that it helped us dodge many awkward situations. Bella hadn't walked in on me since we started using that hanger.

I'd also started restricting myself to one girl every two weeks. Having a girl over with Bella humming in the next room over made me feel uneasy.

The new sex lifestyle was almost making me experience sex withdrawal symptoms. Sometimes I could snap and bitch about the stupidest things. It always made me moody when I had to resist the urge to jump Bella and take her on the cool ice.

At that moment, I dried the last dish and picked up the stack to put them away.

When I opened the cabinet, I was met by rows and rows of color coordinated plates that were neatly stacked in rows. It was official. My house no longer looked like one that belonged to a bachelor's.

Bella had even placed dainty air fresheners in every bathroom, causing them to smell like lilacs, freesias, and berries. It was actually quite refreshing, but kind of cramped my manly ego.

"Edward," I jumped a little whipped my head around. Bella's head was poking through the door.

"What did I tell you?" I asked, annoyed. "I'll finish clean-up tonight."

"No, I just wanted to let you know that your mother just phoned," she said.

How had I not heard the phone ring? Had I really been so wrapped up in my own thoughts?

"You must have not heard over the running water," Bella said, tilting her head towards the sink.

_Or maybe, I was thinking about you,_ I added silently to myself.

Bella smiled cheekily at me. Oh god.

"Aw hell," I groaned. "What did she say to you?"

She better not have recounted my teen years. Those were _not_ pretty.

"Oh, she just wanted to check up on you," Bella said airily, with that same damn smile. "She was a little surprised when I told her that I was rooming with you…"

I slapped my forehead.

"She's waiting for you to call her back," she held waved the phone in her hand. Esme was probably bouncing off the walls and calling all her friends back in Chicago to tell them how her son had finally settled down.

"Sorry," Bella apologized sheepishly. "I didn't know that you hadn't told her yet."

"It's alright," I grumbled. I grabbed the phone from her and dialed the home number.

Esme picked up before the first ring ended.

"Edward!" she cried. "Why didn't you tell me about Bella? I didn't know that you kids were _living_ together! When did this start?"

"Slow down, mom," I exhaled. This is _exactly_ what I was trying to avoid by not telling her.

"You should have let me know that you had someone staying with you," she scolded.

"Sorry mom, it just slipped my mind," I replied sheepishly.

"When did this arrangement begin?"

"About a month ago," I estimated. "Bella needed a place to stay, so I offered to let her stay with me. It's convenient because we can carpool to practices together and stuff like that."

"Is anything, you know, _going on_ between the two of you?" she asked in a hushed tone.

"No, we're keeping it strictly profession," I looked down at my feet. Bella giggled into her hand next to me.

"Oh." She sounded disappointed.

"Now," an idea suddenly popped into my head, "Now we were just planning to head out."

"Head out? Where? Oh, well don't let me keep you," Esme chided.

"We're just going to have some fun tonight. Maybe drive around a little," I said, making it up as I went. "We have the rest of the weekend off," I added. Right when I said that, I knew I'd made a mistake.

"You do? Well that's fabulous!" Here it came… "Well since you guys are free this weekend I think it's about time that your father and I meet this Isabella Swan! I almost feel as if you've been trying to hide her from us," Esme laughed.

I chuckled nervously. "No, we've just been really busy."

"I'll bet," Esme said enthusiastically. "So does lunch at noon work for you tomorrow?"

I ran my hands through my hair involuntarily. I knew that there was no use in trying to get out of this lunch.

"Sure," I gave up.

"Finally! I'll go tell your father the _wonderful_ news," she cheered.

"I gotta go," I said, a little annoyed with my defeat. "We'll see you tomorrow."

I hung up the phone and handed it back to Bella.

"_This_ is why I didn't tell her," I told her crossly. "_You_ and _I_ will be having lunch with my parents tomorrow. Whoopee," I informed her sarcastically.

"Your mother seemed really nice over the phone," she hedged.

I nodded. "She is nice," I admitted. "But she tends to blow thing _way_ out of proportion."

"Much like someone else I know," Bella muttered.

"You mean Emmett? Yeah I know," I replied.

"No," she crossed her arms over her chest. "Not _Emmett_." Whoops. "I'm talking about _you_, you dumbass."

"Me?" I asked dumbly. "How so?"

"Do you really have to ask?" Bella asked, I think that was meant to be a rhetorical question. "_You're_ letting _me_ stay at this place, that must cost a fortune for rent, for _free_."

"Well would you like to help pay?"

"Yes!" she threw her hands up in the air. "I've been asking you to let me pay my rent since day one!"

I bit back, surprised. This woman had a twisted mind. She was getting something for _free_, but she _didn't _want it? What kind of idiot didn't except free stuff? There had to be some defection in the part of her brain that accepts help. There's no other explanation for it.

"I'm sorry you'll have to live with the disappointment," I said coolly.

"You are so difficult sometimes," Bella glowered.

She was calling _me_ difficult? What about her?

"I don't know what the hell your problem is—" I started, but decided to change the tactics—"But I'm taking you to a club tonight."

She blinked confusedly like she didn't know what just happened. "What does taking me to a club have anything to do with this?"

"It doesn't," I winked. "I think we're getting severely fun-deprived. We need to have some excitement in our lives."

"If you want excitement, then we can watch an action thriller right on your couch," she defended.

"But clubbing is exciting-er," I said, starting to get keyed up. I hadn't gone clubbing in about a month now, and was in serious need of that shit.

"That's not even a word. Plus, I don't take alcohol well," she complained.

"Have you ever tried it?" She'd told me that'd she'd never had a drink on her life. How did she know that she had a low tolerance for it?

"No. I haven't," she blushed. "I just have a bad feeling that I'll be one of those people that don't."

Her rationale seemed to never make sense to me.

"You never know til you try," I piped, grabbing my car keys from the hook. I looked her straight in the eye—trying to smolder her with my gaze, and jutted my lower lip out.

"That's not fair! You know what it does to me when you _stare _at me like that…" she trailed off.

"Like what?" I asked innocently, taking a step closer. Our faces were barely a centimeter apart.

"Arg," she finally groaned. "I'm going to bring my own water bottle just in case I don't like tequila."

"Trust me," I assured her. "You will." _You need it, too_. I added silently. The girl was so tightly wound that probably just one sip could unwind her.

"Well, one of us has to be designated driver, so I volunteer," she suggested. _Ha-ha, nice try, not gonna happen._

"I'm counting on _you_ to seduce a guy to give us a ride home," I admitted.

She looked at me like I was crazy.

"I c-can't seduce _men_!" she sputtered.

I shook my head exasperatedly. "Oh sweet lord, with those eyes and that blush it'll be a piece of cake," I said confidently.

She blushed harder at that comment. Yup, I immediately knew I was right. That naive blush could probably win any man's heart and those big doe eyes just drew you right in.

"Actually I changed my mind," I drawled. "You won't have to seduce. I'll drive tonight; you need a few good ole shots of tequila more than I do."

"I won't drink unless you do," she pouted.

"Would you rather seduce a guy into a ride or let me be designated driver. Those are your _only_ two options," I confirmed.

She scowled; a thoughtful crease was starting to form in her forehead. She was adorable when she was thinking so hard.

"I'd rather have _you_ be designated driver," she confessed. I laughed at her choice. _Of course_ Bella would be afraid to unleash her feminine charms to the male population. Actually it should be the _male_ population that should be afraid of _her_ feminine charms.

"Hey, drinking is already a big step for me. Seducing someone in the same night might be too much."

"Of course," I nodded reasonably.

Nonetheless, she grabbed a bottle of water off the counter and followed me out to the garage.

She waited for me to open the door for her, which pleased me. I'd been badgering her about letting me open car doors for her for weeks now, and she always forgot to comply... That is, until now.

"Bella, your ego seems to have inflated in the past couple days. Did you expect me to open that door for you?" I joked.

She glared at me. "You get mad when I do it myself."

Truth be told, I _did_ get annoyed when she opened her car door before I could do it for her. I was glad that she was finally getting the hang of my gentleman-y ways.

She pressed down on the cup holder to slip her water bottle into the hole.

"Is this _my_ blue bra?" she gasped.

I looked over at where she was pointing at, and my eyes might have bugged out of my head. I'd forgotten to take it out of the cup holder after that night I'd kidnapped her from the ice rink. Aw hell.

"No… Uh, I must have…fucked around with some girl in the car," I stuttered.

She looked at the inside curiously. "This _is_ my bra!" she exclaimed. "My name's on the inside!"

"You label your name on your bra?" I asked amusedly.

"Yes. I do. Do you have a problem with that?" she asked through narrowed eyes.

"No, _you_ marking your name on your bras are like _me_ marking my name on my boxers."

"What the hell is it doing here anyways?" she asked, dodging my witty remark.

"Uhh…"

"Oh my god, I wondered where this went. I thought I'd lost it somewhere in the back of my closet. So you've kept it since you rummaged through my stuff before you kidnapped me?" she asked, astonished.

"Yeah," I admitted sheepishly.

"That is so typical of you," she rolled her eyes. I frowned, what did she mean by _that? "_Well, I want it back. This is my favorite one and…"

"Well it's my favorite too, that's the reason why I took it," I muttered.

"I will be keeping what is rightfully mine from now on," dangled the bra by her leg thoughtfully.

I looked straight ahead at the road, too embarrassed to comment.

"Anything else you may have stolen from me?" she inquired. "Possibly other bras or panties of mine lurking around in this car?"

"No," I said quickly. She opened the storage cabinet in front of her seat and a roll of condoms fell out. She her cheeks turned crimson when she saw them. I scoffed, the way she was acting, you'd think that she'd never seen one of those before.

"I use protection, don't worry," I barked.

It was dark, but I'm pretty sure I saw her teeth glinting in the moonlight. A small smile had flitted across her face.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

The next chapter will be Bella's first clubbing experience…

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	24. Two Shots

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Many of you guys are frustrated with Bella and Edward's 'progress'. I try to update sooner so that you guys don't feel like it's taking as long, but I guess that isn't really working. This is intended to be a long fanfic because I have A LOT to cover. Therefore, it may be progressing more slowly then some would like. Thank you for understanding. **

* * *

_Chapter 24: Two Shots_

**Bella:**

Edward drove up to a building that had neon lights flashing through the windows. There was a crowd of people lined up to get in, and even from in the car I could hear the music blasting from inside.

"Shouldn't we have tried something a little bit more, uh, low key?" I asked nervously. This place looked pretty hardcore… I wasn't sure if it was a good choice for my 'first clubbing experience'.

"I have a feeling you'll be a natural," Edward answered calmly. He looked sure of himself.

"The line looks a little long," I tried again. "Maybe we should try a place that's emptier."

He snorted. "It's Friday night, all the _good_ clubs are busy. It's more fun this way anyways."

Edward finally found a parking space, and raced outside to open the door for me. He took my hand and started making his way through the line. People immediately began parting for him as he glided through. Obviously he was very well respected here.

"Cullen!" the bouncer nodded. "Long time no see."

"Yeah," he drawled. "My girl isn't that into this clubbing shit, but I finally convinced her to come."

My heart fluttered when he introduced me as _his_ _girl_.

The bouncer eyed me up and down. Edward stepped in front of me to shield his view.

"She's a piece of work," the bouncer rumbled. Out of habit, I looked around to see if he was _really_ talking about me. Surprisingly, there was no one else around that he could have been talking about. "Hey, if Cullen turns out to be trash, I'm around," he winked.

His roaming eyes were starting to make me feel uncomfortable. I turned back to Edward's chest timidly. His grip tightened on my hand.

"Don't hold your breath on that," Edward laughed darkly. He jerked me through the doors, muttering something I couldn't hear under his breath.

We went through the doors, and the blasting music pounded my eardrums like a wake up call. The whole place was chaotic. Drinks were spilled over the floor, there were couples making out in every corner, and bodies grinding against each other on the dance floor. Some people had passed out in the middle of the dance floor and their friends were drawing over their faces with sharpies.

"Hey Cullen," the hostess walked up to us, fluttering her eyelashes. "Haven't seen you come by in _forever_."

"Irina," he nodded.

"You remember," she touched his shoulder.

"You seem to have quite a reputation here," I noted so that only Edward could hear.

"My shift is over in about half an hour. If you want to…" she pushed her cleavage up and winked suggestively.

He grimaced. "I'm actually here with someone," Edward replied smoothly, gesturing to me. Her eyes trailed over to me, as if noticing me for the first time. A look of disdain crossed her face. "We'll have a table for two," he added firmly.

"Humph," she grunted.

I looked down at my shoes, wanting to disappear. I felt like an outcast among all of these people. Not to mention, I was the only girl in here who wasn't half or more naked.

To my dismay, Irina led us to a table by the dance floor. Just because I can skate doesn't mean I can dance.

"Drinks?" she asked, still peeved.

Edward looked over to me. "I don't really know how this works," I said in a small voice. "Choose for me."

Irina laughed and muttered 'amateur' under her breath.

"She'll have a shot of tequila," he murmured.

"And you?" Irina asked.

"_I'm_ designated driver tonight," Edward grinned. Irina scoffed, but suppressed a snarky comment when Edward glared at her.

She turned away, but not before dropping her pen—obviously on purpose— and bending down to get it (ever so slowly if I do say). To my surprise, Edward didn't even bat an eyelash at her little show.

"She seems to be very fond of you," I commented.

He exhaled warily.

"Not just her, they _all_ are," I looked around, noticing all the girls that were whispering to their friends while giggling and pointing towards him.

"_Me_? What about you?" Edward said through gritted teeth.

"What about me?" I asked, taken aback.

"At least half the men in here are ogling your legs right now, and the other half is ogling your chest," he exclaimed.

My eyes widened in surprise. It couldn't be…

"How the hell can you not notice?" Edward shook his head in exasperation.

"I'm not… How can… What?" I stammered.

He had to be hallucinating. I wasn't _pretty_, much less _sexy_. There was no way that what Edward said could be right.

"I don't think they're looking at me, with _her_, in the room," I pointed at a random blonde chick with a scrap of fabric draped over her that couldn't be quite classified as a dress. Her boobs spilled out of the top, and you could see half her ass since her skirt stopped only an inch or two below her hips.

"Plastic. Easy. Bitch," Edward answered automatically. I gave him a quizzical look. "_I_ don't give a damn."

The waitress came out of no where and plunked the glass of tequila in front of me. "Knock your self out," she purred.

I took a look at the glass in front of me. The liquid inside it was a pale brown color. I couldn't help but notice that it kind of looked like pee. Next to it were a few lime wedges and a salt shaker.

"What do I do?" I asked dumbly. I'd only seen tequila shots happen in movies, and even those memories were fuzzy.

"Well, lick the back of your hand," Edward instructed. I complied. "Pour the salt on it."

"Why—"

"It'll lessen the burn of the tequila," he hollered over the music.

I nodded, and shook at least have the shaker of salt onto my wrist. Edward chuckled.

"Lick the salt, slam the tequila, and bite into the lime."

"Why the li—"

"Basically the lime and salt are like 'training wheels' when you drink."

_Okay_, I thought. This sounded simple enough. Hell, let's just get this over with.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the DJs voice pounded through the speakers. "The wet t-shirt contest will begin in thirty minutes! Ladies, c'mon up here to sign up!" The guys started hooting while drunken girls grabbed their friends, urging them to participate with them. I rolled my eyes. Wet t shirt contests degraded women to the lowest level in my opinion.

Edward was still staring at me, waiting patiently.

Under his watchful eye, I licked the now melted salt off of my wrist, it was bitter. Quickly, I reached for the tequila glass (practically knocking it over on the way) and slammed the liquid down my throat. The contents sloshed down my throat, burning it on its way down. After I resurfaced for air, I reflexively reached for the lime and bit into it.

I released the lime and started sputtering frantically. It tasted awful.

For a half a second, it felt like the world had just stopped, and then the room started spinning. Instead of just one Edward, I saw faint traces of three.

_Three Edward's to look at_, I thought. _Yum._

This wasn't so bad…

**Edward:**

Bella downed the glass in one swift gulp, not leaving a single drop left. She wasn't even wasteful when drinking.

Quickly, she reached for the lime and bit down into it, just as I had instructed. Her face puckered up and she immediately started coughing.

Somehow, Irina had reappeared beside our table with another shot ready in her hands.

"I'm not sure if she's ready for—" I started.

"I'm ready," Bella interrupted me. She swiped the glass (nearly missing since her aim was a little off) from Irina's hand, licked the salt off her wrist like a pro, chugged it down, and then bit into the lime again.

"Would you like another one _sweetheart_," Irina asked.

—"I think two shots are plenty for her," I said, before Bella could respond.

"Edward," she grinned.

I glanced back at her amusedly. "Yes, Bella?"

"I see three of you!" she giggled, pointing aimlessly around the room.

"She's only had two shots and she's piss ass drunk," Irina snickered.

"It's her first time," I defended Bella.

"Let's go dance!" Bella declared, pulling me up from my seat. She staggered a bit, but managed to drag me onto the dance floor.

She started grinded her hips against mine in ways that I hadn't known she was capable of. Her faced was flushed from the alcohol and her hair swung wildly around. She held my gaze, biting her bottom lip seductively.

I gulped. My mind was telling me stop and take her home, but my body couldn't help moving with her.

Her swiveling hips grazed my erection and I sucked in a raspy breath.

This had to stop.

"I gotta go to the bathroom," I managed to pant. "Don't move."

Aw hell, this was the work of the heavens above sending me my punishment for getting goody two shoes, Bella, drunk.

I was starting to regret bringing her to a club instead of watching old Disney movies back at home like she'd originally suggested.

Hastily, I splashed cold water on my face in the men's room before coming back out.

"The wet t shirt contest will begin in five minutes! Ladies, y'all are still welcome to sign up!" the DJ called.

I looked around the room for Bella but she was no where in sight. She wasn't by the table that we were sitting at, on the dance floor, or by the bar. Where the hell did she go?

"Edward!" some girl called out.

I whipped my head around to find some blonde waving and stumbling towards me with a drink on her hand.

"Haven't seen you come by in _forever_," she slurred, latching onto my arm. I looked around frantically for an escape—there were none in sight. I didn't have time for this! I had to find Bella who was probably doing something stupid at this very moment, considering how drunk she was.

I craned my head to look past the crowd of dancing people. I tried to find a brunette head among a sea of blondes, but the lights were dimmed, so it was hard to tell the difference.

The blonde beside me started kissing her way up my neck. Disgusted, I shook her off and she staggered away.

"…And our last contestant, number thirteen, Isabella Swan!" the announcer called out.

I froze. Aw hell. I whipped my head towards the stage to find Bella sitting with a row of girl wearing white crop tops. Obviously, she wasn't wearing a bra, and you could see the gentle peaks of her nipples under the fabric.

Guys crowded around the stage hooted and whistled cat calls at her. Bella sat delicately on the stool, waving out to the crowd enthusiastically.

I wasn't sure what to do._ I_ wanted to see Bella in a wet t shirt, but there was no way in hell that I was going to let the _others_ get a glimpse too.

Fuck, I'd have her put on a wet t-shirt show for me in _private_ someday. There was no way that I'd let _these_ perverts get a glimpse of her.

I pushed past the guys crowding around the stage.

"Shit man, I'd love to score number thirteen tonight," I heard a guy murmur beside me.

I stopped in my tracks and snarled at whoever just said that.

"Don't fucking even think about it," I growled.

"Whoa man," the guy put his hands up. "Just saying, I could tap that ass all night long."

That was enough. I pulled my fist back and clocked him in the cheek.

"Fucking shit what was that—" the guy groaned, rubbing his cheek. I ignored him and continued through the horde.

"Let's get this party started!" the announcer rumbled. The music started again and Bella stood up while swaying her hip seductively. This only brought on more cat calls. I fought to peel my eyes away from her body and concentrated on her face.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a hose being brought out.

Hurriedly, I pushed past the rest of the mob and climbed onto the stage. I grabbed Bella and pulled her away from the rest of the girls.

The crowd booed, but I didn't give a shit.

"Hi Edward!" Bella giggled when she saw me. "Did _you_ want to be in the contest too?"

"We're getting out of here," I hissed.

"Why?" Bella asked innocently. "I think they like me!"

_That's the fucking problem_, I thought. I gritted my teeth, and continued dragging her through the swarm of bodies.

I took one look at the skimpy piece of fabric that was a pathetic excuse for a shirt and without hesitation pulled my own shirt over my head and gave it to her.

She pouted and pushed it away.

"Put the damn shirt on," I ordered.

"You're sexy when you're mad," Bella noted.

"Put the damn shirt on," I repeated.

She scowled, but complied with my orders.

"You are such a prude," she grumbled.

I choked back a laugh. I couldn't believe that _Bella Swan_, of _all_ people, was calling _me_ a prude.

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

This chapter came out in a rush so I'm not particularly fond of it, but hopefully it wasn't too much of a disappointment. When I began writing this, I was really hoping to drop in a kiss between Edward and Bella, but I couldn't find the right opportunity for it to happen. No worries though, it'll come!

I will be on vacation for the next week, so please don't expect an update.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	25. Manners Matter

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**So, I'm back from my vacation fabulously refreshed C: **

**Thanks for being patient. Hopefully you'll enjoy this chapter. I had a great time writing it. Since it's been about a week, I just wanted to recap that Bella just got drunk at a club, almost participated in a wet t shirt contest, but luckily Edward saved her from going down that road. ; )**

**UPDATE: I was going to post this yesterday, but fanfiction login/submission was down so i couldn't. **

* * *

_Chapter 25: Manners Matter_

**Bella:**

It was the day after what I call 'the clubbing incident', and Edward and I were going to head over to his parent's house for lunch. I'd been pestering him to tell me what happened after our dance last night, but his lips were firmly sealed.

I vaguely recall him excusing himself to go the bathroom, but after that, it turned kind of fuzzy. Some guy had approached me, offering to buy me a drink, which I think I accepted… I must have blacked out after that, because I couldn't remember anything else.

Every time I asked Edward what had happened, he just pinched the bridge of his nose and said: "Thinking about it gives me a headache."

Of course, this only fueled my curiously further, but he refused to release anymore details.

Earlier this morning, I woke up with pounding headache and stomach pains that made me swear to never take a sip of tequila again. Considering how bad my hangover was, I'd estimated that I probably had more than five drinks. When I asked Edward how many drinks I'd _actually _had, he snickered and said: 'only two'. Damn, I could have sworn it was more.

I'd figured that I was a lightweight drinker, but is it really possible to get a hangoveras bad as I had after _just_ two drinks?

Fortunately, Edward was a sweetheart and had an aspirin and water all ready for me when I awoke. It's been a few hours now and the pounding in my head has finally died down.

Yup, you heard right. I'd just called Edward a sweetheart. Who knew?

It's just that I couldn't help but notice that his behavior had improved drastically in the past month. We'd set up a system where he would hang a sign on his door if he had a girl over. Lately I rarely saw it make its appearance. Maybe we could even get rid of it soon… However, I knew better than to get my hopes up on _that_.

I pondered over this as Edward leapt gracefully down the stairs.

He raked over my outfit and raised his eyebrows amusedly.

"What's so funny?" I demanded, annoyed. My hangover headache was still lingering and the stress of meeting Edward's parents was all building up—making my temper short.

"You look like you're going to church," he snorted.

I appraised my outfit in the mirror. It was very conservative, but I thought it was pretty casual at the same time.

Next I looked at Edward who was wearing jeans and a T-shirt. He could have been going to a ball game and I wouldn't have known. However, it's not like he has to dress up for his _own_ parents. It's different for me.

"It's just lunch at my house, Bella," he reminded me. "Go change into something more comfortable.

I twirled in the mirror once more. The sweater I was wearing _was_ kind of itchy… I guess since Edward said his parents wouldn't mind casual attire it would be okay.

"Why don't I help you pick an outfit my parents would like?" he offered.

I narrowed my eyes. I wasn't sure if he was offering for the chance to rifle through my drawers or because he actually wanted to help. "Alright," I sighed, deciding to give him the benefit of the doubt. He'd already seen all my clothes when he moved my stuff from the rink to his apartment so I guess it wouldn't be a big deal.

"Sweet!" he pumped his fist in the air. He made a mad dash up the stairs to the direction of my room. I laughed and skipped gallantly behind him. When Edward acted giddy like this, it made me feel like I was getting a snapshot of what he may have been like as a child.

When he got into my room, he immediately sprinted to my bottom drawer. After opening it, a confused look crossed his face.

"I swear the last time I was in here all your lingerie was in here…" he muttered.

I gaped at him incredulously.

"You come in here?" I gasped. "You come in here _and_ rummage through my underwear drawer?" I corrected myself.

He slapped his forehead and gave a sheepish grin. Obviously he hadn't meant for _that_ to slip out.

"Well," I sniffed, still a little disturbed by the fact that I was unaware that he went through my things until now. "For your information, Alice came in and reorganized my closet yesterday. She does it at least four times a year, one for each season."

He nodded slowly, then continued opening and closing each drawer.

"Is this really necessary?" I asked.

He frowned. "Yes. It is."

"Your parents aren't even going to see me in my undies," I reasoned.

"Sure as hell hope not, well—" he paused as he opened the top drawer. "Aha!" he held up one of my bras in victory.

I rolled my eyes at his immaturity.

"Why do most of the sexy ones still have the price tags on them?" he accused.

"Because I haven't worn them. Alice just brought them over yesterday," I lied.

"Liar. These have been here for the past three weeks," he shot back. "I've been meaning to ask you about it but I didn't want to give myself away."

I put my hands on my hips. He'd been rummaging through my stuff for the past three weeks and would have gone on unnoticed if he hadn't accidentally given himself away.

"You're unbelievable," I glowered.

He flashed me a toothy smile. "I know."

"My other bras are more comfortable, so I resort to wearing those," I said sensibly.

He snorted. "Well you're wearing _this _one today, since I'm in charge of picking out your outfit." Edward held up a bright red, lacy bra with gold trim. My eyes widened as I stared at it. I knew it was one Alice had bought for me against my will because of the French tag that was still hanging loosely off it.

"Oh! And these too." Edward held up the matching panties. He licked his lips.

"No wait, maybe these instead." This time he pulled out a blue and white striped one with a red bow in the middle. It was the bra Alice had insisted on getting when we went to the Victoria's Secret Fourth of July sale.

He continued searching through the pile of bras, pulling out every one he liked. Finally he sat down on my bed and heaved a sigh.

"Shit. I can't decide which one!" he complained, infuriated.

I laughed quietly into my hand. It was just one of those hilarious situations that you would think never happens, but did anyways.

Finally he decided to line them all up, close his eyes, and point at one randomly.

"Take it," he shoved the matching underwear set towards me. "Take it before I change my mind."

I nodded wearily, gesturing for him to pick the actual outfit that his parents would be seeing.

After rummaging through my closet for a few minutes, he came back out with a pair of denim capris and a red shirt with butterfly sleeves. They were all items Alice had bought for me.

"Esme likes red," he told me proudly.

Renee had always been fond of red as well. I tried to keep these little quirks about my mother in the back of my mind to make sure I wouldn't forget what she was like after her death.

It was silent for a moment as I looked solemnly at the shirt.

"Hey, if you don't like the shirt I can go find another one," he finally said when I didn't respond.

"No," I took the shirt from him. "This is fine."

I held the outfit in my arms waiting for him to leave so I could change.

He stood staring at me for what felt like hours before I cleared my throat.

"Err, could you… Umm… Wait outside?" I asked uneasily.

He coughed and his cheeks turned the slightest shade of pink. "Yeah… Right… Outside. Sure." For some reason he was at a loss for words. Awkwardly he shuffled out the door as it clicked behind him.

* * *

We pulled up at the Cullen's _house_—or maybe a better term would be _mansion_—not wait an _even better_ term would probably be _castle_. It was just as I had expected it to be. Of course, it was huge, and decorated modernly. There was a well tended garden out front with a small pond by it.

My mouth dropped in awe.

"Wow."

Edward chuckled and got out of the car to open the door for me. We walked up the gleaming white front steps together. It was strange, but I felt as if my shoes weren't worthy of walking on such a clean surface. As I reached for the doorbell, Edward reached for my hand and looked down at me with a twinkle in his eyes.

"Before we go in, I just wanted to warn you," he started casually. "My mother can be a tad over the top, and you'll probably experience more enthusiasm today than you will the rest of your days combined."

"I'm sure she'll be great," I assured. I'm not sure if that reassurance was more for me or him.

I reached over to ring the doorbell again, but before my finger made contact with the diamond shaped button, the door swung open.

"Edward! Isabella! I'm so glad you're here! I saw Edward's car parked in the driveway from the upstairs window and couldn't wait to see you kids!" A woman who I presumed to be Edward's mother clapped her hands together ecstatically. She had a heart shaped face framed with thick caramel hair. Her smile was inviting as she beckoned us in.

"I go by Bella. It's so nice to finally meet you," I shook her hand warmly.

"Bella," she tested it out. "Did you know that means beautiful in Italian?" she laughed freely. Naturally, I blushed. "I have waited ages to meet you! Edward has been hiding you from me!" She nudged her son on the shoulder playfully.

"Yeah, whatever," Edward shrunk back, embarrassed.

"Oh! I love your shirt, Isa—I mean _Bella_. How did you know that red is my favorite color? It's a lovely shade on you," Mrs. Cullen gushed.

"Thank you. What a coincidence," I replied dryly while Edward nudged me playfully on the shoulder, as if to say 'I told you so'.

"The lasagna is just finishing up in the oven. Edward mentioned that you liked Italian."

My eyebrows shot up. I didn't know Edward knew I liked Italian. Not only that, but I didn't know that Edward talked to his mother about me. I glanced at him questionably and he shrugged.

"Well Edward was right…As always," I smiled. "I _do_ love Italian. Thank you Mrs. Cullen."

"Oh, no, no," she fluttered her hands about. "Call me Esme. Mrs. Cullen is just so... What's the word I'm looking for… Oh yes! _Formal_."

I nodded my head in agreement.

"Edward's father is in his study and should be down in a moment. You two go ahead and make yourself comfortable in the dining room," she insisted. "The food should be out in about ready in ten minutes or so."

I smiled again in appreciation.

"Thanks _mom_," Edward said genuinely. Was it just me, or did Esme seem to swell with pride?

Once Esme pranced out of the room, I turned back to Edward.

"She's wonderful," I told him sincerely.

"Thanks. I was lucky to be adopted by her and Carlisle."

I walked over to the fireplace that had picture frames on top of it. Scattered across the surface were frames of the Cullen family. My eyes lingered on the ones of pre-teen Edward, as I looked for the similarities between the boy in the picture and the man next to me. A small smile spread across my face. Even as a thirteen year old, Edward had the looks of a heartbreaker.

"You _were_ cute," I noted softly. I turned around to face him, to find that he was only an inch away from me. My face was right in line with his neck. His sweet, cool breath fanned down onto me.

My breath may have hitched the slightest from our proximity, but I couldn't be sure.

Strangely, I had the urge to stand onto my tippy toes, wrap my arms around his neck, and kiss him.

"_Were_?" he scoffed. "What about _now_?"

The urge to kiss him was gone faster than it had come. Of course Edward just _had to_ ruin the moment again with his arrogance.

I didn't dare say this aloud, but truthfully he wasn't just 'cute' now. He was 'H-O-T'. Instead of speaking my thoughts though, I chuckled nervously along with him.

"Lemme tell you," an unfamiliar voice came from behind. "The little boy in those photographs was quite the charmer."

"_Still is_," I added silently to myself.

A tall man with wispy golden hair descended down the stairs with a serene smile on his face.

"I'm Carlisle, Edward's foster father. You must be Isabella," he greeted me warmly.

"Please call me Bella," I told him, just as I had with Esme.

"Bella… Did you know that means beautiful in Italian?" he winked.

That was exactly what his wife had said when I told her my nickname.

I opened my mouth comment on the coincidence, but Edward cut in with his own thoughts.

"Esme already said that line. You better find another one," he said.

"Really?" Carlisle asked, amused. "Now that you've mentioned it, we _have_ been in perfect sync lately."

Edward groaned, but personally I found it kind of romantic.

Even after just meeting them, it was easy to tell how Carlisle and Esme had connected. They seemed to compliment each other flawlessly.

"I'll go check to see if Esme needs any help in the kitchen," Carlisle said. "Perhaps she would be better off without my assistance, but it's the thought that counts."

I nodded, agreeing with him wholeheartedly.

Edward led me into the dining room and pulled my chair out for me. The table was already set fancily with the silverware wrapped up in intricately folded napkins. I'd come to learn that the Cullens didn't do things halfway.

"Thanks."

Esme came out with a big dish of steaming lasagna while Carlisle trailed behind her with a few wine glasses and a bowl of salad.

She giggled with delight when she saw Edward pushing my chair back in for me. Quickly, she and Carlisle exchanged pleased glances.

"Hopefully I got the sauce just right. I haven't made lasagna in so long," Esme said. "Edward has just _gushed_ about what a great—healthy—cook you are."

My heart fluttered a little more. It still surprised me that Edward had even mentioned my name much less _gushed_ about me to his parents.

"Imagine my surprise when I found out that you had been living with Edward for the past month!" Esme chattered animatedly. "And here I was worrying that Edward was living off of TV dinners and take out, when in reality he was being sufficiently fed and spoiled by _you_!"

"Really, it's only temporary so I guess he didn't want to make a big deal out of it," I cut in.

Esme sighed dejectedly. "Of course." Carlisle patted her sympathetically on the shoulder.

She set down the dish in the middle of the table. "Please, help yourself to a slice," she insisted.

"It smells wonderful," I said conveniently, inhaling the mouthwatering scent.

Edward started reaching for the knife to cut the lasagna with, but Esme slapped his hand before it made contact.

"Ow!"

"Edward!" she glared. "Haven't your father and I taught you any manners? We let our guests help themselves first."

Carlisle apologized to me profusely. "I'm sorry, Bella. You would think that he would learn by now."

Edward sulked in his chair. I had the urge to laugh out loud. He looked like an elementary school boy instead of a grown man.

"Well, who can blame him? When there's a plate of good food in front of you, manners tend to go out the window," I laughed, sneaking in a compliment. Esme beamed from her seat.

"Which is exactly why you should hurry the hell up and get a slice," Edward grumbled.

"Edward!" Esme gasped again.

"Sorry mom," Edward apologized sheepishly.

"I am ashamed in your behavior today," Esme clucked her tongue. "Hopefully this isn't how you act everyday around Bella, is it?" she looked at me.

"No, he's normally the vision of a perfect gentleman," I snickered.

"Nonetheless, I think we need to review our manners. After all, it has been a while" Esme announced.

Edward groaned and covered his face with his hands.

"Please don't make me…" he whined. "Not in front of…"

"I think we need to sing the 'manners song'," Esme instructed.

I cocked one of my eyebrows up. 'Manners song'?

Edward shifted in his seat, embarrassed.

"Edward, we're waiting. C'mon, belt it out loud and proud son!" Carlisle stifled a chuckle.

If anything, Edward sunk down further into his seat. He looked purely mortified, and if it wasn't too devilish to say, I was getting quite a rise out of this.

His singing voice came out barely audible and mortified.

"_Manners matter they really do. _

_Like a mirror they reflect on you. _

_So use your manners every day. _

_No matter where you work or play"_

By the end of his little performance, I had trouble staying upright in my seat instead of keeling over onto the floor in laughter. I applauded along with Carlisle and Esme at his vocal talents. Edward's cheeks were fire truck red in humiliation.

"Hopefully _that_ will teach you a lesson," Esme said, with a twinkle in her eye.

"Encore, encore!" I chirped.

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

**I'm trying guys****.** I'm truly trying to find the _perfect_ spot for Bella/Edward to kiss, but there just didn't seem to be a right time in this chapter. I promise that it's coming though! PLEASE stick with me on this! I know what I'm doing and where I want to go with this!

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	26. Satisfying Saturday

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**This chapter has a heck of a lot of sarcasm in the beginning, so don't take anything too literally. Hopefully you'll understand why this one took a little longer. **

* * *

_Chapter 26: Satisfying Saturday_

**Edward:**

_"Hold Isabella like precious gem! She is diamond you are ring band! Show beautiful girl off!" _Tatiana hollered.

I grunted, straightening my arms that clung to Bella's torso further out so that she would be lifted even higher.

In response, she extended her arms and legs into an even wider super man position as I held her up.

Tatiana had sporadically called us while we were having lunch for a random practice. We'd already spent three hours or so training this morning, and it felt like right when we got back to the apartment to rest, we had to drive back over to the damn arena.

To make things worse, I'd just started digging into a plate of fettuccini alfredo Bella had prepared for me, and had to gobble down the rest of it like a madman to finish it in time. It's a known fact that it is next to impossible to enjoy good food when you have to chug it down. The woman I call my coach is officially going psycho.

Today was just turning out to be a shitty day and it wasn't even past one in the afternoon.

Finally, we made it across the length of the rink and I could finally put Bella down.

"Your arm look deflated!" Tatiana scolded.

I did a double take. This woman thought that my guns were _deflated_? Just a little more than a week ago Victoria and I were [both] admiring them in the ballet studio mirror.

"I need you work out more," she scrutinized my arms. "How long you exercise arm right now?"

"An hour each day," I replied evenly. That didn't cover abs, legs, etc either.

"Well I look at your arm and look like that not enough! Make two hours!" she commanded.

I hung my head warily. Adding another hour of intensive weight lifting on top of the ballet shit, Pilates, and aerobics was going to be hell.

"You gotta be kidding me," I groaned.

"Do I look like I kidding?" Tatiana eyes turned to tiny slits. She looked like a hawk that was narrowing in on her prey.

"No ma'am."

Bella stared at me solemnly, silently shaking her head and tsking her tongue. I shot her a dirty look, daring her to continue pitying me.

Later, after spiking myself with my blade in the back of the thigh during a fall, going too fast and ramming my cheek into the boards, falling another multiple of times, and feeling like I was going to throw up that Fettuccini alfredo from doing one too many spins, the practice session was almost over.

Bella, on the other hand, was still twirling around—completely unscathed. She was having a hot day—landing all her jobs and blurring her spins like crazy. It fouled my mood even more, seeing her flouncing around while I was fighting for every step I took. Sure, I was happy that she was having _such _a _great_ day, but it didn't exactly raise my spirits.

I mean, c'mon, couldn't we have had a bad day _together_?

"Very good, Bella," Tatiana praised. "Edward, squeeze arm tighter so you rotate faster. Very simple physics lesson learn in elementary. You skate so many years—should know by now."

I scowled but obediently followed her shit anyways.

Okay, _now _I was going to admit it. It annoyed the crap out of me that Bella was hoarding all the luck today.

To my delight, I saw 'Learn to Skate' parents and kids starting to fill the lobby. Tatiana would have no choice but to end the practice because the 'Learn to Skate' program began in fifteen minutes.

Finally, she looked out at the filling lobby and said the words I'd wanted to hear since I stepped onto the ice two hours ago.

"Okay. Practice over. Last time I run you guys' practice late all parents mad at me. Take victory lap."

I whooped and sped off to circle the rink once. To 'boost moral', Tatiana had decided that at the end of every practice Bella and I would skate one fast lap around the rink called our 'victory lap'.

"Mr. Cullen, if you show as much enthusiastic during practice as you do now when you leaving maybe you have better day," Tatiana said in a low tone.

I didn't care. I was hungry, bruised, beat, and battered. _Finally_ this fucking hell of a practice was over.

Regrettably, I spoke too soon and jinxed myself.

As I rounded the second corner of my lap, my toe pick got caught in a bump that the previous Zamboni driver didn't pick up. In result, I was sent flying into a full on face plant. The ending 'BOOM' was embarrassingly loud.

It hurt like the worse kinda shit. Aw hell, there would probably be dark bruises purpling my hips for the next week. Maybe longer.

"Edward!" Bella called as I tumbled down.

She glided towards me, her chocolate eyes tinted with worry.

"Are you alright?"

Was she fucking kidding me? Did I _look_ alright sprawled on the ground like I was?

I had no will to stand up and brush myself off. Instead, I remained on my stomach, lying on the ice. They say to ice where it hurts and I conveniently had a huge chunk beneath me. Huh, my cheek was still stinging from being rammed into the boards earlier. Quickly I laid it on the ice. The coolness soothed the burning sensation. Ah. Much better.

"Edward," Bella bit her lip. "Can you stand up? Because the Zamboni is kind of coming out and I've kind always…" she trailed off.

I cocked one eyebrow at her.

"…always had this fear of being run over by one," she finished quickly.

I tried to laugh, but winced when pain shot to my hips. This shit was messed up. Even something as simple as _laughing_ hurt now.

The Zamboni driver honked once. "Sessions over kids, scram!" the driver barked.

I heaved an annoyed sigh. Was he fucking _blind_ or did he not see I was kind of busy and in _pain _here?

"He's starting to back out…" Bella crouched beside me, running a comforting hand through my hair. "Today just hasn't been your day, has it?" she asked softly.

No shit, Sherlock. Instead of talking, I moaned in response.

"Are you able to get up? I can try to drag you off, but I'm not sure if I can… Seeing how you're so much bigger than me and everything."

I snorted. I would like to see her _try. _There was a better chance of the sun failing to rise tomorrow than her being able to lift my dead weight.

With a groan, I weakly bent my legs and pushed myself upright. Bella gripped my elbow to make sure I wouldn't fall while trying to get up. With my luck, I wouldn't be surprised if I slipped again and brought her down along with me.

"That's it…" she murmured, pushing me along as I glided out the arena doors.

Inside the lobby were a stampede of kids screaming for their parents to help them lace up their skates and complaining about who knows what. To top off everything, a headache gradually started pounding its way into my head.

_"Mommy! My skates are too tight! Help me!" _

_"Just one more quarter! I want to win the stuffed elephant!"_

Bella helped me limp to an empty bench. A few kids were pointing and snickering at me. They must have seen my freak accident. In return I snarled, baring my teeth in their direction. That shut them up and they ran to hide behind their mother's legs.

"Missus," a boy that looked to be about eight ran up to Bella and tapped her shoulder. "You are a really good skater," he fumbled his hands shyly.

She smiled sweetly in return and continued brushing the snow off of my shirt and pants.

"Thank you."

"I don't know why you're skating with _him_," he sneered at me. "He can't even skate without falling down."

Bella frowned.

I growled—wanting to pummel the cocky ass kid to the ground. He'd just caught me on a bad day. "You know what you little—"

Bella squeezed my thigh reassuringly.

"I'm just saying," the kid continued, "That you might want to reconsider who you ice skate with," he flashed a toothy smile. One of his bottom teeth were missing and looked numb. It must have fallen out recently. "Perhaps me?"

He stood on his tiptoes, trying to get to eye level with her. Pathetic.

Bella put her hand over her mouth and stifled a giggle. I was ready to launch out of my seat and give him a piece of my mind.

"Thank you for the offer," she said politely. "But unfortunately our _slight_ height difference might get in the way of a few things."

I rolled my eyes. _Slight_ height difference? She was a good foot taller than him.

"My mommy says I'm growing so fast! She even has to take me to get my haircut every two months now!" he chattered.

"You mean your _hair_ is growing really fast," I jeered. "The rest of you, _not so much_," I added silently.

"You're really pretty, missus," he said out of the blue.

Tell me something I _don't_ know.

"Well," he sighed dejectedly. "If you ever decide to drop this _loser_, I'm here every Saturday afternoon for 'Learn to Skate'."

Bella nodded and stifled another chuckle. He ran off, seeming satisfied with himself.

"Kids these days," I muttered. Bella laughed, elbowing me playfully in the side. Even though it was only the lightest brush, I cringed. The wound was still tender. Immediately she coiled her hand back.

"Sorry, I'm so, so sorry!" she cried. "Let me go get you some ice to put on it!"

I watched from afar as she shot up from the bench and leapt towards the snack bar. There were a few parents buying hot chocolate for their whiny kids who were acting up because it was 'too cold'. She stood in line for a few minutes, and when she made it to the front, gestured towards the ice machine that was meant for soda. The cashier cocked his eyebrow at her, but reluctantly grabbed a sandwich bag and filled it with ice. Victoriously she nodded (probably in thanks—Bella is _always _polite) and headed back to me.

"Here," she handed the bag to me wordlessly. It had a paper towel wrapped around it so that that my hand wouldn't get too cold holding it. How thoughtful of her.

"Thanks. You really didn't have to do that."

I took the bag from her hands and applied it to the nook of my hip. After a few seconds of the cold pressure, the pain started to numb.

"You're probably hungry," she noted. "We should head back now and I'll whip something up for you."

I smiled weakly. That sounded nice.

Without further ado, she whipped my arm around her shoulder and helped me up.

As we past through the doors, Tatiana was at the front desk flipping through a bunch of papers. She lowered her glasses and scrutinized me sharply. I could practically see her brain calculating my condition.

"I let you have day off until Tuesday. I want you to get nice rest and get in good condition," she finally said.

Internally I did a little happy dance. That meant I wouldn't have to put a foot in Forks Arena for the rest of today, tomorrow, and Monday.

"I let you have rest of today off too," Tatiana nodded towards Bella. "I expect you back for Monday though."

Bella nodded obediently, although she _did_ look a little crestfallen. I felt kind of guilty that I would be abandoning her during Monday's practice and activities.

Without another word, Tatiana turned her attention back to the paperwork.

Bella continued helping me make my way towards the Volvo.

It took us at least twice as long as it normally did, due to my slow progress.

"Keys," Bella held her hand out expectantly.

I scoffed. "There is no way am I letting you—"

"You are in no condition to drive. Give me the damn keys."

"No," I jutted my chin out stubbornly. _I _was the only one who I allowed to drive my baby.

"Don't be difficult."

"I'm _not_."

"I'm not asking you to give up your arm or anything. _This_ is for your own good and _both_ of our safety," she crossed her hands over her chest and tapped her foot impatiently.

I ignored her prattle and tried to push past her to get into the drivers seat. She stood her ground.

"I could take you _down_," she snarled.

I sized her up, towering a good head above her. "I don't think so."

"You wanna bet?" Lightly, she brushed her hand against my bruised hip. It wasn't meant to be violent, just a wake up call. Although it was just the simplest of touches, I jerked away. That shit _hurt_.

She gazed at me condescendingly, as if to say: 'I told you so'.

"Alright, alright. Point taken." I dug my hand into my pockets, fumbling around for the keys. "Here," I said grudgingly shoving them into her open hand.

"Thank you. Now that wasn't so hard, was it?" she cooed.

A small rumble escaped my chest. "Don't push it."

--

When I got into the apartment I threw off my shirt that was wet from falling. The moistness was making it stick to my skin uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry you've had such a bad day," Bella acknowledged.

"Me too," I sighed wistfully. I propped myself up on a pillow and my eyes fluttered shut. The springs of the bed creaked as I felt Bella plop down beside me.

"Where does it hurt?" her lovely voice asked gently. Right now, it was like music to my ears. My hearing had sharpened since my eyes were closed.

"Here," I pointed to my shoulder that I'd jabbed.

Something soft brushed against my shoulder for less than half a second. An electric current flowed through me. In surprise, my eyes flew open to find that it had been Bella's _lips_. Involuntarily, I shuddered against her touch.

Maybe I was blowing things out of proportion, but my shoulder _did_ kind of feel better after _that_.

"Here too," I pointed to my neck, praying that she'd kiss me again.

"When did you hurt your neck?" she inquired.

"I don't know, I had so many injuries today that it's kind of hard to remember how I got them all," I snapped. In reality, my neck was one of the only places that didn't suffer today, but I really wanted her to kiss it anyways.

She gave a tiny smile and bent down to brush her lips against my collarbone. The jolt of electricity hit yet again.

A blissful smile formed on my face… As well as a bulge in my pants.

"Where else?"

I wanted to tell her that my erection was kind of throbbing and to kiss _that_, but didn't want to scare her off. Instead I settled for something less _intimidating_.

"Here." I pointed at my cheek.

She shook her head at my antics, but leaned down for a tiny peck anyways.

"Here." Hesitantly, I gestured to my lips.

Her eyes widened for a moment, but to great astonishment, she lowered her eyelashes and began leaning down.

My heartbeat quickened as I realized what was happening. All the sexual tension between us was finally cutting loose.

She stopped her movement and took a deep breath when her face was less than a centimeter away from mine. I inhaled her strawberry freesia scent.

I was about to just shoot up and slam our lips together, but before I could, she closed the short distance between us and pressed her mouth against mine.

After a lingering second, she began pulling away—obviously only intending for brief contact.

Unfortunately for her, I wasn't quite ready to give the moment up quite yet.

To keep her down, I grabbed her by the waist. She squeaked in surprise and froze faster than ice.

My eyes opened and so did hers. Both of our mouths were against each other, but neither of them were moving.

I inhaled through my nose to compose myself and began working my lips against hers. Slowly—at first… Then gradually it became more urgent, as I yearned for a response.

At last, seemingly centuries later, she began reacting. Her lips moved in sync against mine and her arms wrapped around my neck, pressing our chests together.

A low moan escaped my throat at the thought.

She shifted onto the bed for an easier angle. As she crawled, her knee accidentally bumped against my hip.

I yelped, fighting the urge to bite down on her lip and abruptly pulled away before I lost control.

Her eyes widened in panic and her cheeks turned redder than I had ever seen them. I didn't even think that was possible.

Mortified apologies tumbled out one after another from her and I chuckled at her ridiculousness.

"Silly Bella," I brushed the stray hair out of her scarlet face. "It's okay."

**End Chapter**

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A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Whew. 26 chapters later, it happens. Hopefully that lived up to your expectations. I know that how the first kiss happened probably won't satisfy _everyone_ since expectations were high, but hopefully most people will like it.

If any of you thought that it happened without any build up, please keep in mind that they have been building up sexual tension for weeks now.

For those of you that think Edward changed his 'player-esque' habits too quickly, no worries. That side of him is still lurking in the shadows.

Also, there are many of you wondering _what_ is motivating Edward to change. I know I have done a poor job on addressing that issue (it's tough), but I'll try to touch base on it in future chapters.

Anyways, I have never been more terrified of uploading a chapter. Please let me know your thoughts on how I did.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	27. Behind Closed Doors

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**NOTE: Some of you guys informed me that I pulled an **_**'Indiana Jones'**_**. I have to say that when I was writing that portion of the last chapter, the idea seemed somewhat familiar, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. When I got the reviews, I about leaned back in my chair too far and fell over. I'm sorry if some of y'all were disappointed by the lack of creativity there. I try to be as original as I possibly can. **

**+Please keep an OPEN MIND while reading this chapter. Thanks. **

* * *

_Chapter 27: Behind Closed Doors_

**Bella:**

Really, it was only meant to be a simple peck between two _friends_.

But when he pulled me in tighter, who was I to resist? I don't know if it's just me, but when my lips and Edward's are connected, my normally rational train of thought leaves the station.

So instead of just the brief kiss, it turned into a full blown, passionate make out.

I know I may not have a lot of experience in the kissing or even the _boys_ department, but that sure as heck wasn't something _friends_ did together.

My brain screamed for me to stop and pull away—but for some reason the messages were being muffled by the sensations that were shooting through me. Once we made contact, I was instantly addicted. It felt like there was no force in the world that could stop me. Every muscle reacted to his touch like I was high on heroin.

Pah. Who needs drugs when you have _Edward_?

Really, God is quite a nice compromiser. Although he made drugs bad for the human body, creating Edward made up for all that shit.

I bet that even _guys_ had fleetingly considered going gay when they saw Edward.

Of course, everything comes with its price.

As my punishment for slipping my boundaries, I humiliated myself by crawling onto him and bumping against his bruise. In my defense, it's kind of hard to remember that the guy's injured when you're kissing him.

Gah. Why did life have to be so unfair?

He brushed a stray lock of hair out of my face and said something that I didn't hear. The blood was still rushing to my face from embarrassment. Is it possible to be so mortified that you can't your hearing gets cut off?

My eyes darted around the room, looking for an escape.

The doorbell buzzed and I breathed a sigh of relief. Perfect timing. Maybe there _was_ a guardian angel looking down at me after all.

"I'll g-go get that," I stammered, not meeting his gaze. Awkwardly, I started to crawl back off of him—this time _extremely_ careful to avoid any skin contact.

"Wait, Bella, I—"

I stopped and looked back to his face, instantly hypnotized by his smoldering eyes.

"I think we're worth a shot," he finished.

My mouth opened, then closed, then opened again.

"I'm attracted to you," he winked, gesturing towards the bulge forming in his pants. "And _obviously_ you're attracted to me. So why the hell not?"

"Because, well, er," I faltered. _Because skating partners never work out that way. Ultimately it'll just ruin us on and off the ice. It's impossible to _not _lose. _

Once a player always a player. That's what they say.

But maybe he and I could be an exception that. Maybe…

"We could work it out. It wouldn't have to be intimate. I wouldn't push you to do anything you wouldn't be ready for," Edward insisted.

I chewed on my bottom lip nervously. If I agreed, it would make turning back a lot more difficult.

Everyone says to follow your heart. But what about your mind? What about your _dreams_?

Was accepting Edward in _that way_ worth risking the Olympic gold?

He continued holding my hands, awaiting my answer.

A cold sweat started to break out on the back of my neck.

"I can't even—the door. I have to get the door," the words tumbled out sporadically.

This time, I practically jumped out of his grasp and ran out.

I made my way to the front door and swung it open breathlessly.

"What do you want…" I trailed off, expecting it to be Emmett or Alice.

Instead, a stunning, leggy strawberry blonde with her lips perfectly glossed, hair straightened, and wearing four inch high heels stood before me. My jaw may have just dropped. She looked like she had just stepped out of the big billboard advertising cosmetics by the gas station.

Her cell phone was wedged tightly between her ear and her shoulder as she talked into it.

She eyed me distastefully, muttered something to the person on the other end before flipping her expensive looking phone decorated in rhinestones closed.

"I must have the wrong place," she mused.

I think I may have shrunk a few inches shorter from standing next to her. My light makeup was sloppily splattered across my face while hers was perfectly drawn on. Each strand of her straight hair was in perfect place. It was the type of hair I always tried to style mine like but never turned out quite right.

"A guy by the name of Edward Cullen wouldn't happen to live here, would he?" she asked, chuckling to herself. Not bothering to wait for my answer, she had already begun turning to walk off.

"Actually, he does. I mean he does live here," I finally said.

She froze and spun around. Her expression was incredulous.

"_Really_?"

I nodded.

"How interesting," she murmured. Her eyes raked over me more time, making me uncomfortable. "His taste sure has changed."

"May I speak with him?"

She started making her way past me, but I blocked her off. She was probably just one of Edward's past flings. I would be doing him a favor by not letting her in. Yes, he would appreciate it…

"He isn't feeling well could you come back another—"

"Tell him it's Tanya, and see what he says," she grinned.

It was my turn to freeze in my tracks. _This_ was the infamous Tanya Denali? Edward's _old_ skating partner? What the hell was she here for? Wasn't she supposed to be flouncing around in Chicago? She couldn't possibly want him back, could she? We were working so well together and I was just in the middle of considering—

"Well?" Tanya asked, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Oh," I stammered.

"Fabulous."

Taking advantage of my momentary paralysis, she shoved her way past me, her heels clacked on the interior hard wood floor.

**Edward:**

I loved how we took care of each other.

I loved her blush.

I loved her smile.

I loved her sense of humor.

I loved her personality.

I _hated_ how I didn't realize this earlier.

Even from day one I had been taken by here—although I may have not recognized it until now.

The door started to creak open and I squeezed my eyes shut in frustration. Even without a crystal ball to look into the future, I _knew_ that Bella would be difficult about _us_.

In the end it would work out though. I was sure of it. I mean, these things always worked out if they're meant to be… Right?

I exhaled, wishing that we could fast forward through all the drama that I knew anticipated.

"I'm disappointed. You look like shit."

My head shot up like a rocket out of the pillow. I knew this voice and it sure as hell wasn't Bella's.

It belonged to Tanya Denali.

Aw fuck. _This_ drama, I hadn't counted on.

"Tanya," my voice was a little raspy.

She strutted in and set down her purse by my bedside table. As if we hadn't even been apart, she straddled me running a finger over my chest seductively. I tried to turn away but she was too fast for me and had me pinned to the mattress.

She looked exactly the same. Well, at least everything besides her tits did. She must have had them redone.

"What are you doing?"

"I've missed you," she said sultrily, ignoring my question.

"Okay." Why the hell was she here? Had she flew over here just to tell me that she _missed _me?

"You haven't called." She ran her hands through my hair. I couldn't help but notice that they smelled like fake perfume compared to Bella's natural freesia scent.

"I've been busy."

What I said was the truth. I _had_ been busy with Tatiana's hectic schedule.

"With _her_?" Tanya sneered, tilting her head towards the door.

"Yes. No. It's complicated." Tanya licked her lips.

"I think I would be able to keep up," she pressed.

I shook my head grudgingly, willing her to drop the subject.

Everything about having Tanya in Forks made me uneasy. Forks was where I had built my new life. Tanya was from my notorious old one. I wanted to dry my damndest to keep them from clashing.

Who's the cutie that answered the door, your maid?" Tanya sneered.

No , it was Bella. The center of my new life.

I cleared my throat. "My roommate."

She gave me a quizzical look. "Don't give me that shit. I know don't do roommates. _Especially_ chick roommates," she said slowly. "If that weren't the case we would have been living together years ago," she muttered, recalling how I'd declined her offer to rent an apartment together for 'training purposes' years ago.

Tanya may seem like just another dumb blonde, but she's not. However, she does use that aspect of her to manipulate others—and she's fucking good at it_. _

"_You see_, Carlisle's made some bad investments and we're cutting our costs. Bella was the perfect 'win-win' solution to help out our financial—"

"That's all bullshit, Cullen. I just heard that your daddy just sealed a multimillion dollar deal. The whole town's going on about it."

Damn. I didn't know Tanya paid attention to the news. Hell, I didn't know Tanya paid attention to anything _besides_ herself.

"You would think that the rumors would have died down back at home by now, but they haven't. Everyone's still angry that your family—the only chance for fame in our town—betrayed us for 'wherever the hell Forks is'."

I scoffed. Of course they would hold grudges.

"And you seriously believe that I care about what people back there think about me? I thought you knew me better than that."

She smirked, all knowingly. "That's beside the point. Why are you rooming with 'Plain Jane'? I would think that if you _did_ have a chick roommate, you'd at least pick a better one."

I frowned. I didn't like the way she was referring to Bella. Tanya had it all wrong. Bella was anything _but_ plain.

"Here name is _Isabella_," I informed her through gritted teeth. "Bella for short."

"Yes, Plain Jane," she sighed edgily. "You still haven't answered my question. Stop avoiding the subject."

Bitch. So maybe I _did_ care what people back in Chicago thought about me. I had a reputation to keep up with. As soon as Tanya got a load of what I was doing over here and reported back, the whole town would have a field day.

I kept my mouth clamped shut.

"Fine. It doesn't matter anyways," Tanya conceded, realizing she wasn't getting anything out of me.

I cocked an eyebrow at her. Normally when Tanya wanted something she didn't just let it go like that.

"_I_ have great news," she clapped her hands together and flipped her hair back.

"What?" I asked flatly. What the hell did she want to tell me that motivated her to fly all the way from Illinois to Washington?

"Daddy finally caved!" she squealed.

I cocked my head to the side in confusion.

"Daddy caved. I get to stay in Forks with you!" she shook my shoulder giddily.

My eyes may have just bugged out of my head. What about—

"We can start training together _pronto_! I mean, it's only been a few months, so we may be just a little rusty, but I think we can get back to the intensity we had!" she continued.

I didn't say a word, afraid the wrong phrases would come out.

She shook my shoulder again. "Do I seriously need to spell it out for you? We're going to be partners again!"

I nodded. "I understand that."

"Then why aren't you acting all happy?" she demanded.

I sighed warily, thinking about how Bella was just outside the door.

Tanya gasped. "Oh my god."

I shook my head, willing her to stop talking so I could just think.

"Oh my freakin' god. You already found someone else, haven't you?" she accused, stabbing a manicured finger into my chest. I winced. They were sharp and pointing.

"How could you even _think_ about doing something like that?" she seethed. Her voice was rising steadily. "I can't believe you would…"

"When I moved, we agreed to go our separate ways," I said calmly.

"No we certainly did not say—"

"It was mutual."

"Not to me, it wasn't."

A gentle knock sounded on the door.

Bella.

I tried to throw Tanya off of my lap, but she remained straddled against my dick.

"What's wrong, Cullen? We used to do this all the time," she rubbed against me innocently. I suppressed a moan. I'm a guy who has been on sex withdrawal for the past two weeks. Can you seriously blame me?

Her eyes widened again.

"No way—"

"Don't," I urged. The door was starting to open and I heard Bella's soft voice calling my name.

"You're skating with '_Plain_ _Jane'_?" she cackled, reaching down to toy with my collar. The door immediately stopped creaking open and remained in its place.

Tanya continued grinding against my groin.

I tried to suppress a moan, but with no luck. I prayed that the sound had been too soft to be heard.

"Could you possibly get _any more_ desperate? I can't believe that you'd lower your standards to _that_!" Tanya continued. Her voice was intentionally loud. This time, the door slammed shut. The pitter patter of feet signaled that Bella had departed and was running down to the opposite end of the hall.

"Fuck you, Edward Cullen," I think I heard her lingering whisper as it drifted away. I cursed under my breath, wondering how the hell I was going to get out of this.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

This chapter came out in a rush, so bear with me.

Yeah. There it is. So the bliss was short lived. I know A LOT of you guys didn't want Edward to screw this up, but I think it's ESSENTIAL to the story. Let's just enjoy the ride for now…

Let me know what you think will happen. I'm curious C:

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	28. Fine Print

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 28: Fine Print_

**Bella:**

_"You have reach Tatiana Zablosky. You leave a message and I call you back if you important."_ It was the second time in the past half hour that I'd tried to get a hold of Tatiana.

"Tatiana? It's me again. I need you to call me back so we can discuss a new strategy."

There was no need to elaborate. She would immediately understand what I meant by those few phrases.

I sat alone at one of the tables outside of Starbucks. It was an unusually warm day for Forks, and the warmth was comforting.

I was heartbroken.

But I wasn't sure what the reason was.

Was it because my gold medal dreams were crushed? There was no way I'd be able to train with Edward without letting our personal lives get in the way. I was getting ahead of myself. Maybe he was going to take Tanya back anyways—that way the decision wouldn't be in my hands.

Or was it because I liked Edward in _that way_? Was it seeing him straddled by another woman that made me feel like this?

No. That couldn't be it. I knew he had been through a lot of woman. Was it actually seeing him in the action that triggered my emotions?

I tried to convince myself that that was not the case, but sometimes, as much as you want to make yourself believe something, it's impossible. Your conscience knows the truth whether you want to deny it or not.

Already, it disgusted me that I'd even _considered_ giving him a chance.

I couldn't even think of a single factor that prompted me to fall for him.

Okay, scratch that. I could think of several.

Perhaps it was just the mere exhilaration of having someone that you were attracted to think of you in the same way.

Not ten minutes after he promised me that he had changed, I'd found him grinding against another girl.

What were his exact words? Oh yeah:

_"We could work it out. It wouldn't have to be intimate. I wouldn't push you to do anything you wouldn't be ready for."_

Now that I think of it, he hadn't broken any of those promises. He hadn't promised to be faithful… Just patient.

I scowled at my stupidity. I wished there was something I could hold him accountable for, but my haywire emotions were completely my own doing.

I'd jumped to conclusions that: '_We could work it out'_ meant that he would stop seeing other people. Stupid naïve, Bella.

It was always the fine print that got ya.

A part of me couldn't help but wonder what he was doing with Tanya.

Maybe he was telling her that _I_ would be the only woman for him. That he had made a mistake and that he had to leave to find me.

However, the chances of _that_ were highly unlikely.

They were probably celebrating their reuniting with hot, passionate sex.

_That_ was something I'd bet my money on.

I pondered how the hell someone could be unlucky enough to lose two things in one day.

Any hope for the gold medal was now dashed. I was relying on Tatiana to come up with a brilliant plan that would find me another perfect partner.

I had also lost Edward. No. That wasn't right. He wasn't even mine to begin with. You can't lose what you never had.

My phone vibrated the table, almost spilling my drink. The caller ID on it had broke a few weeks ago when I accidentally dropped it in the sink.

"Hello?"

"Bella, I—"

At the sound of his voice, my bottom lip started trembling. I snapped the phone shut.

It vibrated again.

"Leave me alone you bastard!" I screamed.

Mothers with children picked up their pace as they passed me.

"Isabella?"

The stress building in me whooshed out in one breath.

"Tatiana? Oh. Sorry. I thought you were Edward."

"Oh Isabella," she sighed. I could just imagine her shaking her head in pity. "Where are you? I come find you."

"I'm at S-Starbucks," I sobbed.

"I be there in fast moment."

I flipped my phone back shut, burying my face in my hands.

Tatiana was one tough cookie when she was my coach, but her grandmotherly side was still there, lingering in the background.

Moments later, I saw her silver Volkswagen swerve into the parking lot, cutting off another car for a parking space. Her tires screeched to a stop and she scurried out of the vehicle.

Somehow, she had spotted me without looking in my direction. I wouldn't be surprised if she had some kind of 'Bella radar' in her.

"What happen this time?"

"E-Edward and T-T-Tanya were…" I hiccupped, unable to finish my sentence.

She shushed my blubbering and patted me on the back soothingly.

"Shh, shh, we work something out," she soothed. "Now tell me. Who is this Tanya you say?"

"E-Edw—_his _old partner," I sniffled.

She nodded with immediate understanding.

"This happen to me once," she recalled solemnly.

I looked up. "Really?"

"Yes. I once skate with very fine-looking man. His name Pedro," she sighed. "He so handsome it blind me from who he really is."

I had a feeling that I knew where this was going.

"I remember him like it happen yesterday. He manipulated girl for own pleasure. Right before 1964 Olympic game, he drop me for other girl."

"I very devastated and missed Olympic that year."

I listened intently. She'd never told me this story before, and I was curious. My sniffling had slowly died down.

"But guess what? I be strong! I believe that if I work hard, destiny take care of self! I find different partner and we both work hard. Before I know it, four years already pass! I come back and win first place at 1968 Olympic with Maxim!"

"I'm not bionic like you, Tatiana," I argued. "I don't think I have enough left in me to wait around for the next Olympics."

"Ah, I think same as you at first. But you must believe in you. You have potential to win! I know you do or else I would have fired you as my student a decade ago!"

"Huh," I answered dryly.

"But," she waved one finger up, "Isabella, you must know there _is_ one difference between your Edward and my Pedro. With Pedro, I know right away that we have nothing. His charm blind me to believe otherwise. After that I learn to see more clearly. I see you and Mr. Cullen have that 'spark'! I never once doubt you two not work."

"Thanks. But, you know, nobody's right _all_ the time, and I think you're wrong about Edward."

She narrowed her eyes. "Have I been wrong ever?

"Well…" I paused. "There was that whole Mike thing where—"

"Mr. Newton no count. I was distressed coach trying to find good student a partner," she interrupted quickly.

"I tell you my take on this. For some reason, I do not think Mr. Cullen will go back to Tanya. I have been watch him everyday and I think he really enjoy skating with you. However, if I wrong—which very unlikely—we find another partner for you. There still time!"

I pretended to look at an imaginary watch on my wrist. "Nationals to qualify for the Olympics are in just a little more than a year. Unless some miracle happens—oh, and by the way, miracles never happen to me—I am _toast_."

Tatiana heaved a sigh. She'd known me long enough to know that I was a magnet for disaster.

A strangle sob escaped my throat.

"Shh, shh, you attracting attention. I go make few phone call," she assured, stroking my shoulder comfortingly.

She stood and walked away mumbling, "Such beautiful, intelligent girl. So much potential. Such shame, fate put her in all this bad…"

Minutes later, she came back with a glum smile one her face.

"I make few phone call with more potential partner that I pick before you find Edward. Good thing I keep their phone number, because when Edward come I almost decide to throw them out," she explained in broken down English.

"No—I told you that Edward would be my last try when you first made me meet him," I cried.

"Well I lie. I no give up on you!" she exclaimed.

I sighed in resignation. "Fine. When are the appointments?"

We'd gone through this many times and I was practically a pro.

"I decide to save time have them all come at same time!" she informed me gleefully.

"When?"

"Err… Today," she said after a sheepish pause.

"WHAT?" I exploded. I was in no shape to meet another partner not three hours after Edward and I broke it off! "There is no way I'll be able to handle—"

"You just smile and look very pretty," Tatiana insisted. "Let me do all talking." She paused again; I could practically see the wheels rolling in her head. "Go home and change clothes. You look like Zamboni run over you!"

"No way," I shook my head and crossed my arms over my chest firmly. "Edward is back there probably gettin' down with Tanya, there is _no way_ I'm gonna walk in on them."

She eyed me skeptically. "If they 'getting down' like you say, then they will not notice you pop in and grab clean clothes."

I groaned. "Please, I'm desperately hoping that he _would _notice me come in. Dear Lord, I'm don't _want_ him to have fun with _her_."

"Then go and see how he is doing," she persisted.

I waved my hands in the air. "No."

"Fine. At least go freshen hair and face in restroom. Boys be here in about one hour. They all seem very want to see you," she negotiated.

Too bad I hadn't ended it with Edward early on like my gut reaction told me to. It would have saved all this time, energy, and _pain._

* * *

**Edward:**

"Thank God, 'Plain Jane' is gone," Tanya said as she kissed her way down my shoulder.

"Stop." I ordered tightly. "Are you mentally incompetent, or do I have to say it again? _Her name is Bella_."

"Whatever. I've missed you," she sat up, pouting.

"Get off me."

"If you wanted me to get off so much, you could have shoved me off yourself ages ago. You're stronger than I am. Obviously you want this _too_," she smirked.

I may be stronger than she is, and if she weren't a lady (I use that term very loosely), I would probably beat her up once I had the energy to.

Unfortunately, trying to wriggle out of her clasp caused pain to shoot through my bruised hip. For once in my life, I was defenseless.

I tried to push her off with my arms, but she twisted away from my grip.

"Ah, ah, ah," she shook a finger in my face. I hated it. "I _like _it right here."

Slowly, she grinded against my cock. It started to harden. I couldn't help it. I may despise the woman, but I'm still a man.

"Stop it," I bit back a moan. It felt good. I'd been sexually suppressed for two weeks and I was desperate for _something_—_anything_.

"Obviously 'Plain Jane' hasn't been satisfying you," Tanya noted.

"We don't work like that," I grunted. With all my will power, I fought the urge to hump her back.

"I didn't think you worked any other way with women besides sex," she tilted my chin up and leaned forward.

"That's the old Edward."

"You're still the same person."

"No I'm not."

She started bouncing on me harder. "You sure about that?"

I concealed another moan building inside me. Here was an experienced whore, practically offering herself to me when I was frantic for release.

_Must not give in. Must not give in._ I chanted to myself.

"No," I finally whispered. "I'm not sure."

She nodded approvingly. "Good because I like the—"

"But," I interrupted her loudly. "I'm _sure_ that I _want_ to change."

"You don't mean that," she grimaced. It was weird how I never noticed how ugly she looked when she frowned.

"You wouldn't last a month with 'Plain Jane's' virgin ass," she mocked.

"I've already lasted four, and I'm just fine."

"No. You're not just fine. You are _horny_ as hell, and in denial," she argued. "I can fix that."

A stealthy hand made its way to my belt buckle.

"Move your hands, Tanya," I growled menacingly.

She undid the first hook triumphantly.

Then she whipped my belt off.

"If you don't get off of me in the next five seconds, I won't be responsible for my actions and possibly your injuries," I warned. I wasn't bluffing either.

"Try me," she sneered.

"Five…"

Slowly, she zipped my pants down.

"Four…"

She rubbed her ass in circular motions against me.

"T-Three…"

She bent down to kiss me. I turned my head away disgustedly. I didn't want her lips to fowl the taste of Bella's that still lingered in my mouth.

"Two—Get off of me damn it."

"One…"

My eyes flashed. Using my hands and knees, I flipped her onto her backside. Her figure landed on the mattress with a loud thump and her head cracked against the wooden bedpost. I didn't give a shit.

Nonetheless, the dumb bitch squeled with excitement—probably thinking I was finally responding.

If she weren't a girl, I'd have her pummeled to the ground by now.

"I love it when you take control it's so sexy and—"

"Leave."

"What?" she asked, shock glazed over her tone.

"Leave," I repeated.

"No, but—"

"GET THE HELL OFF OF MY PROPERTY," I roared.

She glared, holding her ground.

I kind of had to give it to the girl. She was one brave chick to have the guts to mess with me at a time like this.

"I sat by a fat man with the worst bodily odor I have ever witnessed for more than a four hour plane ride to get us back together. Hell, there is no way I leaving without getting us back together," she shrieked.

"I'm afraid you'll have to go own with the disappointment," I answered coolly. "If you don't leave my house this second, I'll call the cops to have them remove you—"

"Call the cops? Really? My daddy would just pay all the charges off—"

"He won't be able to when _my_ daddy hires his lawyer, and sues your old man for all he's worth," I threatened.

She gulped, a flicker of apprehension came to life in her eyes. It was evident that she understood what the Cullen name was capable of.

A tense silence followed.

"Fine," she finally gave in. "You better watch your back."

I cocked an eyebrow up.

"You won't even know what _hit_ you," she continued.

I scooted her out of the front door straight away.

"Edward Cullen, you—"

I slammed the door in her face before she could finish.

Quickly, I whipped my cell phone out at the speed of light and dialed Bella's number. I couldn't even imagine my life before she entered it. Her presence had grown onto me, and now, I was addicted.

Not even having to look up her number in my Contacts list, my fingers dialed by memory.

"Hello?"

She picked up my call.

Hell, I couldn't believe it. Originally, I'd psyched myself up for leaving a pitiful voicemail.

"Bella, I—"

A click sounded on the other end. She'd hung up.

At that moment, I remembered that earlier this month she'd dropped her cell into the sink. The caller ID had gotten screwed up from the water damage. She wouldn't have picked up if she'd known it were me.

If Tanya ruined this for me, not even having to wear the disgusting outfits during my time in prison would stop me from beating up a girl.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

I PROMISE that I won't be dragging this whole Tanya fiasco out too long! The 'mini plot' that includes her should only continue for two more chapters MAX. Hang in there!

I guarantee you that this DRAMARAMA is KEY to the storyline and character development. Have faith in me!

+For those of you that enjoy my humor (i am still shocked that people understand me), it will be back! I mean, what's a good story without some juicy drama mixed in? C:

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	29. Down to Business

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

Just as a clarification in advance, 'Chris Rockne' is who you think he is… If you don't get what I said just now, you will once you read the chapter C:

OH. I'm sorry for the DELAY! This is SUPER LONG though so hopefully that compensates for it.

* * *

_Chapter 29: Down to Business _

**Edward:**

My phone rang the familiar ringtone I'd set for Bella.

I wasn't ashamed to admit that my heart soared the moment it came on. As if I were afraid the world would end, I snatched the device off the table and slammed it to my ear.

"Bella! Thank you so much for calling, let me explain—"

"Shut your trap, it just me," Tatiana's voice came from the other end. From her tone, it was obvious that Bella had told her about what had happened. My insides burned with shame.

My shoulders visibly hunched in disappointment.

"I meet you at your apartment in ten minute. _Tasha_ better be already gone," she said lowly.

I didn't bother to tell her that her name was _Tanya_, not _Tasha_. It didn't matter what her name was anyways. The result was still the same.

"Okay, but why are you—"

A click sounded on the other end, followed by silence.

That was two women abruptly ending a phone conversation with me in the past hour. Women never hung up on me until now. My record was getting pretty badly tarnished today…

Tatiana would be here in ten minutes, and my place looked like shit.

Tanya had 'accidentally' knocked over a glass vase on her way out, and the sharp chunks were scattered across the floor.

Bella's books were strewn all about the room, but I didn't have the heart to move them back to the bookshelf. Seeing her novels laying around made me feel like a part of her was still with me. I wanted to leave it untouched.

I checked myself out in the mirror.

The reflection that glanced back at me looked like hell. There were bags starting to form under my eyes and my hair had taken on its own life form and was sticking out in different directions. Whatever, Tatiana had seen me in my ballet clothes and this wasn't much worse than that.

My chest was bare. Tatiana might go a little easier on me if I'm not shirtless. I think she's impossible to charm with a pack of abs.

Quickly, I threw on a shirt. The doorbell rang just seconds after.

"Hello, Mr. Cullen," she greeted me coolly.

"Tatiana."

"You have shirt on backwards," she noted.

I blushed and looked down. Hopefully she wouldn't jump to conclusions about that.

She poked her head through the door and wrinkled her nose. "Is _Tasha_ leave yet?"

"Yeah, I had her leave."

"Good."

She made her over to my couch, and sat daintily on the cushion. I followed and sat opposite of her.

Tatiana's fingers drummed the side of the sofa. I wasn't sure if she was doing it unconsciously or just to make me nervous.

"I must say, Mr. Cullen, I am suffer from quite disappointment for your action," she began. I sucked in a breath.

"I do have question for you though," she continued. "Are you going start skate with _Tasha_ again?"

Before she finished her question, I started shaking my head. "No, no you've got this all mixed up. It was Tanya who came in and—"

"I don't care what you saying," she snapped back. "All I care is one of my good student, Isabella, very troubled and you are cause."

I hung my head in remorse. All this time, I'd been worrying about whether or not I'd be able to continue my partnership with Bella. Never once had I thought of what was going through her mind when she saw Tanya on top of me.

"I thought you were one to make Isabella _believe_."

"I am!" I protested. "The whole Tasha—I mean _Tanya_ thing was completely her doing. I didn't—"

"I do not care who start it."

"You've gotta trust me, coach, I didn't intentionally try to hurt Bella or make her—"

"I know. I trust you," she cut me off solemnly. I looked up, surprised with what I was hearing.

"That is why I going to try my best to give you second chance with Isabella," she patted my shoulder warmly.

"Really?" I squeaked.

"Yes. You prove to me that you worth it," she confirmed.

I could have kissed her 'old-person' lips at that moment. That was how happy I was.

So in the end, it was really Tatiana who came through for me. If she was on my side, Bella would take me back in a snap. I mean, the girl practically kissed the ground her coach walked on.

"I only help you to certain extent though," Tatiana said.

The psycho lady could read my mind.

"The rest has to be you."

I groaned. If she left the reconciling up to me, I'd probably just make it worse. It didn't really matter anyway though. I had nothing left to lose.

"So what's the plan?" I asked eagerly.

"Well, early I already set up Bella for meeting new partner. They all going to meet her at Starbucks," she said.

"What? Aren't you supposed to be _helping _me? Not finding Bella other guys to bounce around with!" I hissed, exasperated.

"No worry, I know Isabella won't be happy of ones I set up…That is, except one," she answered mysteriously.

_Except one_? What if Bella decided to drop me for that 'one'? What the hell was I going to do if that happened?

"Who?" I panicked. Losing her was one thing. Losing her to _someone else_ was another.

"You."

"What?" Now I was confused.

"I make you one of her potential partner!" Tatiana replied, with a scheming smile.

Was she stupid?

"Bella doesn't even want to see me. I doubt she'll think it's funny if I show up as one of her 'potential suitors'," I retorted dryly.

"She won't know it's you if you change clothes, hair, and add mustache." Her eyes gleamed animatedly against the light.

"By hair, you mean wig, right?"

"Of course not! Wig so easy to spot fake one. We going to _dye_ and style it different way!"

Her plan wasn't sounding all that great anymore. I looked my hair the way it was.

"I don't think that I want to dye—"

"Do you want Isabella back?" she demanded.

"Yes, but—"

"If you not willing to dye your hair I think I wasting my time. You not even agree to sacrifice your hair—that grow eventually grow back— for sake of you and Bella's partnership," she put her hands on her hips.

"No! I'll dye my hair," I added quickly. "I'll even dye it rainbow or pink if necessary."

Pink, maybe. Rainbow, I dunno.

"Good. I know _best _hair dresser! I make appointment right away!" she beamed. "We go to same person that do my hair for me!"

I eyed her short bob haircut. Personally, just by looking at Tatiana's hair, I didn't think mine would turn out all that great. After all, the best way to get to know a hair stylist is by their creations.

"I need borrow your phone. Mine is piece of crap and signal isn't work," she held out her hand. Wordlessly, I handed her my cell phone.

"Why American make phones like this? No key pad! How you dial?" she complained.

"It has a touch screen," I explained, opening up the 'touch dialer' for her.

She started dialing a number, but kept pressing missing the keys and having to restart again.

"Why they make phone this way? My finger isn't so small can touch individual key," she complained.

"Fat fingers…" I muttered.

"What?" Tatiana's head shot up.

"Nothing," I answered angelically.

I grabbed the phone from her struggling hands. She recited the number for me to dial and held the device to her ear.

"Hello, hello, this is Tatiana. I need make appointment for my student with Alexei. Dye and cut."

She paused to listen to the person on the other end. A disgruntled frown shaped on her face.

"Are you sure you have no just a little bit later opening?" she pressed.

Another paused and the corners of her lips turned further down.

"Okay, okay, we be there in ten minutes then. Bye, bye."

She handed the phone back to me.

"Let's get move on, Mr. Cullen. We must be downtown in ten minute," she grabbed her purse.

All I'm going to say is that a ride in her car gave speed a whole new meaning.

Miraculously, she made what was supposed to be a thirty minute drive into ten minutes.

* * *

**Bella:**

An hour later, my hair was brushed out of its tangled mess, makeup was reapplied, and lips were glossed. My clothes still appeared a tad sloppy, but they would do.

I watched the door open and close, not so eagerly awaiting my interviews.

In a sense, it felt like dejavu of the first day I'd met with Edward Cullen. At the thought of his name, another bitter wave washed over me.

The door jingled open again, snapping me out of my thoughts.

A tall, russet skin, and dark haired man walked in. My jaw dropped. I almost didn't recognize him without the cast he had worn when I last saw him.

"Jacob Black?" I called out incredulously.

The head turned and our eyes locked.

"Bella?" he gave me a funny look.

"Jacob!"

I pushed my chair back and ran towards him.

"I can't believe that Tatiana called _you_!" I said breathlessly.

I thought Tatiana would be calling some fresh meat for my candidates, not ones from the past… Was Jacob possibly interested in a partnership again?

He gave me a confused look. "You mean Tatiana? Psycho, hellish, Tatiana?"

"Uh, yeah, sure." I hesitated agreeing, not wanting to disrespect my coach.

"I didn't get any call."

What? He didn't? Then why was he…

"Why are you here then?" I asked stupidly. "I thought you'd come to see me…" I trailed off, thinking of how positively arrogant and 'Edward-like' that had sounded.

"So it's all about you isn't it?" he joked, nudging me in the side. We both knew that I hated the spotlight shining on me anywhere besides on the ice.

"I'm here to visit my father—you remember, Billy."

"Oh."

"Where you expecting me?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"No, yes, well kind of," I blushed.

"How so?" he pressed.

"Well, it's just that, I've been set up with a few guys and they were supposed to meet me around this time…"

He cocked an eyebrow. "You're _finally_ dating?"

"No!" I turned red again. "Not romantically. It's for, er, a new partner."

"I thought you were with Newton."

"God no. I broke it off with him months ago."

"Oh," he frowned. "So you've been partnerless for how many months then?"

"About three hours now," I answered mock brightly.

"You mean three months, right?"

"No, hours." I gave him a serious expression, as if to say: 'That's right buddy, just _hours_ ago.'

He looked dumbfounded, his eyes were clouded with confusion. I guess I wasn't making much sense.

"I had a partner _after_ Mike," I admitted.

He stifled a chuckle. "You couldn't give the poor guy at least a six month 'try out'?"

"Uh, no," I responded flatly. "It was kind of the other way around. _He_ couldn't give _me_ six months."

A blank expression crossed his face.

"Oh."

An awkward silence followed.

I decided that it was time to discreetly change the subject.

"How's your knee? I mean, I haven't seen you since after your ski trip…"

My partnership had ended with Jacob due to his ski accident.

"It's recovered nicely. Practically good as new. The doctor says that I can't put vigorous amounts of strain on it though," he filled me in wistfully. "I really miss participating at the annual

"Oh," I answered softly. My hopes were dashed—_again_. Except this time, it was for a completely irrational reason.

"It really was a shame, Bella," he tilted my chin up to meet his gaze.

"Yeah," I mumbled.

"We could have been great," he sighed, as if imagining where we would be right now if he hadn't been injured.

"I know."

"I haven't been able to _really_ talk to you after that mishap," he mused thoughtfully. "I still think about how you're doing every once in a while."

"Yeah, well you left kind of abruptly…"

"I guess I haven't been able to say that I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I messed it all up for you."

Without having to elaborate, I knew he was talking about my gold medal dreams.

The word 'sorry' seemed to tell the story of my life.

"It's not your fault that you banged up your knee."

I shushed the part of my mind that was screaming: 'Yes. It was. Why the hell did you go when I told you not to!'

"Maybe not all of it," he agreed. "But I could have been more careful. I could've not given into Sam's constant pestering about how he had a great time share up in the pass. I could have listened to you when you pleaded for me to just take a 'staycation'. I could have—"

"What's done is done," I exhaled.

"If I could, I would go back in time to that fateful day and decided not to tag along with Sam," he told me sincerely. Then he looked down at his watch.

"I gotta get back to Billy's now. Only came down here to get him his ice tea, and he'll probably be as cranky as a pack of angry wolves if I'm not back with it by the time he wakes up."

"Alright. I'll see you around."

"Yeah, see ya."

We gave each other an awkward hug, considering the staggering height difference. After we broke apart, he strode away and I made my way back to the table I'd been sitting at.

I sat alone at my table for a few more minutes, watching people come in and out. The employees were giving me strange looks since I'd come in two hours earlier in a sobbing mess. I even started recognized the music playing quietly in the background since the CD had restarted.

The buzz of the people around me seemed to be droning on like a lullaby. I yawned resting my head against the table. It had been a long day; a quick power nap… just for a second couldn't hurt…

"Isabella!"

I jumped out of my position, startled by a nasally voice from behind.

"When the _enchanting_ Miss Zablosky rang, I rushed over here as hastily as I could! I must admit that I went five miles per hour over the speed limit. Luckily the police force didn't catch my awful production," a man winked.

How scandalous. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Going five miles per hour over the speed limit was nothing compared to what _he_ had done. Gah! I was already turning paranoid and comparing everyone I met to _him_!

And did he just call Tatiana Zablosky _enchanting_? Never heard that one before. Never thought I would either.

I turned to see who was addressing me.

A medium height, pole-looking man stood before me. His hair was a dull black, successfully bringing out the dandruff scattered across his scalp.

I followed my gut reaction to lean away from unhygienic men.

"… I mean I'm absolutely _ecstatic_ that I didn't get caught by cops, but I do think that they should be monitoring our streets more carefully. Accidents are at such an alarming rate…"

Bla bla bla.

This guy sure seemed to know how to pump up a party. (If you didn't notice, that was spoken in sarcastic terms)

"And who are you?" I asked groggily. This guy had interrupted me from my beauty sleep. Okay, maybe not _beauty_ sleep, but you get my drift.

"Oh I am so sorry madam!"

Did he seriously just call me 'madam'? I thought that word was extinct.

"How rude of me for not properly introducing myself earlier," he chattered. "I go by Eric Y-Yorkie."

His eyes started to water and I instantly became concerned. What had I done to make him cry? I couldn't have came across as too bitchy or—

Without any warning, he erupted into the largest, most earth shattering sneeze, I had ever watched.

Worse yet, he did it into his hand.

Ew.

"Ah, it's allergy season for me," he sniffled, wiping the remaining snot hanging out of his nose with his palm.

Finally, he recovered. "Where was I? Oh yes, I'm Eric Yorkie. Pleased to be of your acquaintance."

"Bella Swan," I managed a weak smile through gritted teeth.

To my repulsion, he held out the hand that he'd sneezed into for me to shake. I felt my eyes widening in disgust. I wanted to soak the germ infested thing it in hand sanitizer for at least 24 hours.

"Uh," I stuttered, desperately trying to come up with an excuse to not have to touch him. "I have hand cancer. Wouldn't want it to spread."

I could have slapped myself in the forehead. That was the dumbest thing I'd ever heard.

He looked taken aback, then snorted in laughter. "You're hilarious! We all know cancer isn't air borne!"

Ha-ha. Yeah. That's me. Hilarious. Whoop-dee-do.

Still refusing to shake his hand, he dropped it to his side. Afraid that I hurt his feelings, I studied his expression carefully. It was unfazed.

"Well," I began to stand up. "My time is up. It's great meeting you and I'll give you a call if I think things will work out."

"But we just—"

"Goodbye now!"

Quickly, I escaped out the door and sprinted to my car.

I sat there for a few minutes to catch my breath. After a few minutes, a dazed Eric Yorkie stumbled out and drove off.

It was safe to go back in.

The employers groaned when I reentered. I gave them an apologetic look and sat back down at the same table.

A cool breeze of air rushed in as someone swung open the door. My hair blew back due to the force of the wind.

He had a pair of dark sunglasses on even though it had turned cloudy and gray outside. Not a beam of sunlight was in sight.

I shivered, and not because I was cold.

Even with his eyes shielded, I could tell he was gorgeous. Somehow, he seemed oddly familiar, but I couldn't quite place it.

He took his sunglasses off and scanned the room. It was obvious that he was looking for someone—perhaps me?

Just my luck, he caught me staring, and his gaze bore into my own. My breath whooshed out in a single puff, surprised by the intensity of it. His hair was jet black, complimenting his eyes that were so dark that you could barely see his pupils.

I could see his bicep muscles poking through the sweatshirt he was wearing. They were huge. I didn't want to get on his bad side; he could beat me up easy.

There was something about his appearance that sent a chill through my spine. For lack of a better term, he looked and radiated _danger_… I've been told numerously that I'm a danger magnet. Perhaps this was a 'sign', as Alice liked to put it?

_Stop_. I told myself. I was jumping to conclusions again. That was what had brought me down with Edwa—the last time.

I took a closer look. There seemed something 'off' about his face. His hand reached up and awkwardly stroked a patch of hair above his upper lip as if he were exploring foreign territory. _That _was what had been bugging me. If we ended up partners, the mustache would have to go.

_Stop_. I wasn't even sure if he was here to see me. Hell, I wasn't sure if he even knew how to skate.

However, I couldn't make myself break away from his hypnotic stare.

A few seconds later, he started making his way towards me. My brain malfunctioned, causing me to hold my breath.

"Hello," he leaned against the table smoothly. "Are you by any chance, Isabella Swan?"

His voice sounded so much like Edward's… Rich, velvety, and—gah! I was hallucinating things again.

"Yes," I squeaked. "They call me Bella though," I tried to talk as smoothly as he had, but it came out awkward and jumbled.

"You look like a Bella," he winked.

My cheeks warmed, remembering how Esme and Carlisle had commented on how 'Bella' meant 'beautiful'. Thanks mom and dad. Of all the names you could have chosen, you picked the one that I could never live up to.

"Thank you."

"I'm Chris Rockne."

He ran his hands nervously through his shiny dark hair. Huh. Edward used to have that habit too.

"So Chris," I said, trying to start a conversation. "How are you do you and Tatiana know each other?"

He paused, looking stricken. "W-we go way back… Uh, she was my nanny when I was younger."

I almost burst out laughing, not being able to imagine Tatiana as a nanny. From what I knew, she hated handling little kids.

"Yeah, our mother's have always been on pretty good terms… Well as good of terms you can get on with Tatiana, if you know what I mean," he winked.

I giggled. I _did_ know what he meant.

"Wow, you would think that we would have ran into each other before then. Since you're a skater, and I'm a skater…" I wondered aloud. "I thought I knew every one of us in the area."

"Yeah," he fiddled with his collar. "I would think the same."

"What rink do you skate at?"

I was curious. There was only one other ice rink in Forks besides Forks Arena, and I'm pretty sure I'd never seen Chris's name on the membership lists.

"I actually go up to Seattle to for practice. My coach's facility is there," he explained.

That made sense. I once had a rink friend who drove three hours a day so that she could train with her coach. Figure skaters tended to go to extreme measures to become successful.

_Okay, Chris_. I thought. _Chit chat time over. Let's get down to business._

"So motivated you to consider a working relationship with me?" I asked, emphasizing the _working_ part.

"Well, I've been searching for a partner for almost two years now, but no luck. I thought I'd looked everywhere for someone, but I guess not," he eyed me.

I nodded. "Yeah, it's crazy how we've never crossed paths before this. I thought that I'd already met all the eligible 'skating bachelors' in the Pacific Northwest region."

"Yeah," he mumbled. "Crazy…"

"If we were to work together, would you be willing to train six plus hours a day?"

"Don't you think that would be necessary if we wanted to make the Olympic team?" he retorted genuinely.

I was a little taken aback. _Finally_, I'd found someone who took their Olympic dreams as seriously as I did. This guy, Chris, meant business.

"Of course," I muttered.

"You're a good looking guy," I admitted. "You probably have a pretty busy social life. Are you willing to give up some of that to train?"

There was no beating around the bush today. I wanted to know if Chris knew _exactly_ what training with me would entail. Apparently, I hadn't been clear enough with Edward.

"You don't have to worry," he ensured me.

I stifled a snort. That's exactly what Edward had told me. And as soon as I'd let my guard down and stopped worrying, he'd betrayed me.

"I understand exactly how much time and effort this will take if we want us to work," he continued.

"I'm glad," I breathed a sigh of relief.

Chris seemed nice enough. A tad too good to be true, but maybe I should just go with the flow and stop overanalyzing my insecurities.

"I look forward to seeing you again, Chris. I think we really connected," I smiled, surprised that I'd actually meant what I said. "I've been through a few really _disastrous_ partners and I'm hoping we can be different. I'll have Tatiana call you to schedule a 'try out'."

I grabbed my bag and started to stand up.

"Wait—Bella…"

Suddenly, he started fingering with his mustache. Then he grabbed the corners and started to tear it off.

I gaped in horror as I watched the scene unfold. "What are you doing—what the hell?" I screeched.

'Chris' peeled off the line of hair above his lip as he watched my shell shocked expression carefully.

It took me a second to absorb what had just happened in a mere three seconds. But when I did, it hit me like a ton of bricks.

No. It couldn't be...

"_Edward?"_

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

If you guys didn't see the little clarification at the beginning of the chapter, **'Chris Rockne'** was **Edward**.

I also put a little Bella/Jacob background info in there…It might come into play later on as the plot develops.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	30. Talk It Out

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Before we start, I wanted to answer a few questions…**

**1. Why did you have 'Chris/Edward' reveal himself so quickly?**

Originally, I was planning to have Edward remain in his 'Chris Rockne' identity until after Bella and his 'try out skate', but I felt like I would be dragging it on too long. The main point of disguising Edward was to give him the chance to meet up and talk with Bella.

**2. Why couldn't Edward and Bella sit down and talk out their problems like normal people?**

In my mind, Bella is terribly pissed off with Edward, and he knows this. Edward knew that he couldn't just call up Bella and ask her to talk since she'd already drawn her own conclusions regarding him and Tanya. I guess it _is_ kind of mean to have Edward 'trick' Bella into talking to him, but she wouldn't speak with him any other way.

**3. WHY DID EDWARD HAVE TO DYE HIS LUSCIOUS COPPER LOCKS?**

:'(

**PS. I can't believe we're in the 30s as far as chapter number. woohoo! **

**PPS. Sorry for the delay… I've been occupied with other things. Now let's get this shit sorted out—**

* * *

_Chapter 30: Talk It Out_

**Edward:**

"I look forward to seeing you again, Chris. I think we really connected. I've been through a few really _disastrous_ partners and I'm hoping we can be different. I'll have Tatiana call you to schedule a 'try out'," Bella grinned.

I held back the urge to cringe at the word: 'disastrous'.

She started to stand and hook her bag off the chair.

At that moment, I knew it was time.

Initially, I hadn't planned to reveal myself so early on, but dragging Bella along in my little game was too much to bear.

"Wait—Bella!"

I grabbed the edge of the fake mustache Tatiana had applied and ripped it off in one motion.

She gaped and stuttered at my performance and her eyes widened into saucers. It took a few more seconds before realization dawned in her pupils.

I braced myself for the impact.

"Edward?" she screeched.

The entire store went silent. All eyes turned to Bella and I as they hungrily drank in the 'Forks drama' that was about to occur.

Her eyes were blazing with fury and I saw her hands trembling.

"Oh my—what the hell…" she stammered, unable to get the words out since she was so enraged.

"Let me explain," I pleaded. "You wouldn't talk to me any other way and…" I trailed off.

"You're hair…" she whispered.

I did a double take. What?

"You're beautiful, beautiful hair," I think I heard her whimper. It was too soft for me to be sure though. Absentmindedly I ran my hand through it.

"Please tell me that's a wig," she pleaded.

I wish.

I shook my head. "One hundred percent dyed, baby."

For the shortest instant, I was afraid she'd chastise me for calling her 'baby', but it never came. Whew.

"How long?" she inquired painfully.

Was she serious? Didn't she care about, well, the _other_, more important things?

Again, Bella never failed to surprise me. I'd expected her to be completely catatonic when I showed myself, accusing me of duping her… Instead she was… mourning over my hair?

"Tatiana said it would stay in for at least three months."

"Oh," she muttered. It was followed by silence. Maybe she'd forgiven me already… Whoops. Never mind—

—Suddenly, a furious spark replaced the sorrowful glimmer in her eye. I prepared myself for the real explosion.

"This was _Tatiana's _idea?" she gasped.

"Well…"

"That backstabber! This is unbelievable. Is this some kind of never ending game you like to play?" she demanded.

"No—"

Damn it. Damn it. Damn it! Why the hell couldn't she just listen to the shit I have to say instead of cutting me off?

She swiped my fake mustache off the table and dangled it in the air. "_This_," she gestured wildly to the piece of hair between her fingers. "_This _was not a game?"

I was hoping she would have cooled down since it'd been a few hours, but apparently not. Whatever, sometimes time didn't really heal things. I wouldn't be surprised if she hadn't cooled down a year from now.

"No," I answered quietly. If I didn't know better, I would have laughed. Seeing Bella frantically waving a fake chunk of hair around was quite the image.

"_This_ wasn't a game either?" she gestured to my black hair and sunglasses. Involuntarily, I ran my hand through it.

I shook my head, deciding it would be best to play it cool, calm, and collected. I would wait until she got the last of the anger out of her before I told my side of the story.

"Then what the hell do you call it? Building up and tearing down the last shred of hope I had left? I thought that 'Chris' was God's fourth—no _fifth _chance for me," she accused. "Was the first time not enough for you?"

_No. _I said silently. _The first time was too much._

"_Chris Rockne?_ Pah. I should have known that you were a scam. Just like 'Edward Cullen' was all along."

"It was the only way!" I couldn't help roaring right back at her.

She backed down a little; small traces of fear etched her features. In the blink of an eye, guilt started swimming through my system.

I couldn't allow myself to lose my temper with her. It's totally reasonable for her to be acting like this. I had no reason to take out all my frustration on Bella.

"Edward Cullen was never a scam," I said more quietly.

"How can I b-be s-sure?" she asked, her voice breaking at the end.

She looked away and started blinking feverishly. It took me a moment to realize that it was to keep the tears from overflowing.

The hole in my chest widened at the building moisture in her eyes.

"Let's get out of here," she stood and fled out. Muted stares followed her fleeing figure. I glared at all the meddlesome people eavesdropping on our drama since they were too conservative to make their own.

I knew for a fact that each of those fuckers slapped on a fake smile, pretending to like each other, and ghosted through everyday.

At least I knew what Bella and I had was real. We didn't have to pretend around each other.

As I made eye contact with each one of the on lookers, they looked away fearfully. Wimps.

I turned my eyes back to see Bella breezing out the door. Hastily, I jumped out of my seat and ran after her retreating figure.

The whispers started as I ran. I didn't give a damn.

The shop must have erupted into an uproar after I left. My name and Bella's would be floating about town within two hours [max].

She was standing by my car, tugging at the door repeatedly.

"Damn thing, open!" she hissed.

I fumbled with the keys in my pocket; her urgency was making it hard for me to do anything right.

Right when I unlocked it, she yanked at my poor door with such force that she almost flew back onto her butt. Normally, I would find the situation funny, but this time, it was just distressing.

"Shit," she shrieked as she fell back. Luckily, she regained her balance before she tumbled down.

I looked back at Starbucks and saw that the entrance was crowded with people with their noses pressed to the glass. They were spying on us.

Giving them the best glare I could muster, I slid into my car.

"Drive," she commanded.

I obliged. Seemed like a good idea to me.

Swerving out of the parking lot, I kept the corner of my eye fixated on her. She was looking straight ahead with a defeated look on her face.

I wasn't sure where to go.

Besides my apartment, she didn't have any place to stay. Taking her 'home' was out of question. And I didn't think she'd appreciate being brought to my apartment. The bittersweet memories were still fresh, and I didn't want to take the chance of having them rush back to her when she stepped foot in it.

So instead, I drove in circles around the main road. We passed the seven eleven at least seven times.

I snuck another glance at her. Now her features were completely blank, and strangely composed. It made me ill at ease, wondering what was running through her mind.

"I don't mind going to your place," she finally spoke up.

I turned into the driveway. She sped out of the car and ran towards the front door.

"Slow down!" I panted.

"I don't want anyone to see me like _this_," she gestured to her tear stained face.

I still thought she was beautiful. Even like _that_.

Afraid of rejection, I held my tongue and opened the door for her.

"I'm gonna go to my room," she said, heading towards the stairs.

I grabbed her arm to stop her.

"We should talk about this," I sighed.

She looked up and sighed.

I was tired of playing games. They wouldn't cut it this time. The only way to fix this shit was to talk out our differences

"Bella," her name slipped easily off my tongue. "We all have our pasts. Mine just happens to be tarnished with mistakes."

She lifted her head up, surprised that I'd just admitted all the past girls as 'mistakes'. When I thought about it, that's exactly what they were.

"To make things worse, your track record is squeaky clean," I scowled. Maybe I wouldn't look like such a bad guy if she wasn't such a goody two shoes.

"It's anything but," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

"You have every right to hold all those stupid faults against me. Every single right," I ignored her all too humble comment. She looked away.

"I wish I quit skating years ago," she snapped sourly. "I wish my mother never even enrolled me in lessons in the first place."

"You don't mean that."

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "You're right. I don't."

There was a thoughtful silence.

"I wish I did though," she added.

"You love the ice," I pointed out.

She agreed resentfully.

"Well, I think that that if someone has that much passion for something, it's incredibly admirable." I took her hand in mine. She didn't pull away.

"It's my own self destruction," she shot back.

"Don't you think that the pain is worth the gain? That it's worth it?" I pressed.

"No…" I gave her a meaningful look. Her shoulders slumped in resignation. "Yes.

It was quiet for another eternity.

"What the hell were you doing with Tanya?" she finally burst. The hatred was bubbling above the surface. For some reason she still hadn't released her hand from mine. Maybe there was hope. "If you were fucking around with her, couldn't you have hid it better?"

My head snapped up at her words.

She couldn't possibly think that Tanya and I had been doing it for longer than…

"I mean, as long as I don't find out, as long as _this feeling_ isn't drowning me, I don't mind if you're sneaking behind my back with _her_."

"You don't understand," I sputtered. "This afternoon was the first time I'd seen her since I moved."

The look on her face was disbelieving. "You can drop the act now. I really don't care how long you've been fucking with her. That's none of my business."

"No, really! I had no idea she was coming—"

"Save it."

"I haven't seen her or had any contact with her since Chicago. Her visit was completely spontaneous. I was as shocked as you were when she showed up!"

"Fine. But how can I know that I'm not working my ass for _nothing_? How do I know that you're not training with her when I'm not around? I don't want to waste my time working my ass off with someone who'll just drop me in the end."

"I'm telling you, Bella! I haven't had a single thought of ending us since we started," I tried to make her understand.

Her answer surprised me.

"Why?"

What was she asking?

"What do you mean _why_?" I asked, utterly mystified.

"You're telling me that it's never even fleeted your mind to end _us_?" her voice shook.

I nodded slowly.

"Impossible," she spat. "They all thought about it at some point. They all thought I was obsessed. James, Jacob, Mike, _even Jasper_. How are you any different?"

"Because I just am!" I struggled for a rational response.

"So it's never crossed your mind to call it quits? You've never thought that I was crazy? That I was chasing a dream that would never come true?"

"I've never once doubted our ability _together_," I answered truthfully.

It was the honest truth. If we continued improving at the same rate, we actually had a decent chance at the Olympic gold. It was a long shot, but we could do it.

"I don't get it," she mused. "You say that you never considered 'trading me out', yet I find you sneaking around with Tanya without my knowledge? It just doesn't make any sense."

"I'm fucking trying to tell you!" I roared. "I had no idea Tanya was swooping in for a visit. When she came she just pounced on me! I was taken by total su-fucking-prise."

My breathing was starting to speed from the pent up frustration.

"If you are having the slightest second thoughts about us, I want you to tell me this second. If you are even playing with the idea of leaving me for someone better, just tell me now. It would just result in the same thing, so I'd rather get it over with now," Bella advised me.

"Why would I leave for someone better—" I paused for dramatic effect—"when I already have the best _right now_."

She sucked in a breath.

"Flattery gets you no where, Cullen," she warned.

I chuckled darkly. "It may be flattery, but it's also the truth."

Her expression was dubious. "You really want to keep going? Even though I'm paranoid? And crazy? And stupid? And—"

"Yes," I cut her off surely.

"Tanya was really just a misunderstanding?"

"Yes."

"You're not secretly flying off to France during the night to train with some French babe?"

I laughed. "I'm not."

Water pooled at the corners of her eyes. "Why didn't you just say so?" she laughed.

Hysteria bubbled over me as her warm body pulled me into a hug. "I've been trying to tell you since you ran out of here a few hours earlier."

At that comment, she pulled me in tighter. I dropped my head down to support against hers.

I couldn't help but savor the feeling of her tits were pressed up against my chest. Fuck shit. She wasn't wearing a bra. Quickly I pulled away before she could feel the hard on growing in my pants.

"You're not wearing a bra," I accused. She was going to be the death of me.

"I don't like wearing a bra when I'm sad," she sniffed. Her eyes narrowed. "How can you tell? I have two layers on."

"Jesus, I could tell even if you had a ski jacket on," I muttered.

I turned to grab a Kleenex for her smeared makeup.

My eyes about popped out of my head when I found _Tatiana_ peering through my window.

She immediately ducked down, but it was too late. I'd discovered her. How long had that nosy woman been there?

I elbowed Bella gently in the side. "Tatiana's spying," I murmured, pointing to the window that she'd been at.

"No way," Bella choked back a weak laugh. "Apparently her TV's been broken and she hasn't been able to keep up with her favorite soap operas. I guess she had to settle for second best.

I snickered.

Bella wiped her eyes and made her way to the window.

She unlatched it poked her head out.

I watched from the couch. Setting things right was sure exhausting.

"Put your hands up, coach!" she giggled. "You've been discovered!"

A string of what I believe to be Russian profanities came from below.

Tatiana stood and brushed herself off embarrassedly.

"I only come and check up on you," she defended herself.

"Yeah right," I muttered.

"Okay," she admitted. "I been here for little while! But only because I want to be sure you two okay. You see, I send in competition application yesterday and it cost me money—I don't want money go in for nothing."

My eyes widened. Did she just say…?

"You entered us in a competition?" Bella and I bellowed simultaneously. Actually, mine sounded more like a bellow. Bella more of squeaked it out.

"Well yes, I think you guys ready. It only a local one. They don't give me refund if you withdraw," Tatiana shrugged. "It no big deal…"

"No big deal? It'll be our debut," Bella breathed.

"We'll kick the rest of the competition's asses—" Tatiana cleared her throat at my poor word choice—"I mean butts"," I corrected myself confidently.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

I tried to not keep it realistic and not too sappy! This took me a while since I wasn't sure how to portray Bella and Edward right. Although they both still have lingering doubts, they've worked out some of their differences. Hopefully you guys liked it!

BTW, if you didn't catch the last part, Tatiana DID enter Bella and Edward in a local competition. That should be coming in the next chapter. I think it's about time that they make their debut. C:

One last thing, the review count has been dwindling… However, story alerts have been skyrocketing. If you have an extra minute, please leave a comment or two.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	31. Girl Scout

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

* * *

_Chapter 31: Girl Scouts_

**BPOV:**

"I want you guys go home and get very good sleep," Tatiana lectured as the Zamboni door rolled open.

It was the last practice before our debut competition tomorrow.

Edward and I had progressed since the little Tanya debatable. We weren't as close knit as before, but things were getting better (or worse, depending on how you look at it).

He had stopped his advances towards me. Boo.

It made me _confused_, for lack of a better adjective.

Was I relieved that he wasn't trying to romance my pants off of me, or disappointed?

There was no use in denying it now. I was a hell of a disappointed. I swear, on many occasions he's come _this close_ to pressing our lips together, but then, he would turn away.

I'd even resorted to applying the shiny strawberry lip gloss Alice gave me for my birthday last year. Every hour I'd reapply it and smack my lips at least three times, but still, no luck.

Gah! If only he hadn't kissed me _that one time._ If I hadn't known how exhilarating it felt, then I wouldn't have been able to miss it.

"No _chimpanzee_ business between you tonight," Tatiana added sternly.

"That's highly unlikely," Edward muttered.

I hadn't seen his 'DO NOT DISTURB. I'M HAVING SEX', sign on his door in a while. Poor guy was probably pretty sexually deprived. Secretly, seeing him in all this anguish put a wide smile on my face. Not because he was so cranky, but because, well, he wasn't having sex with _anyone_.

I immediately turned beat red. "The term is actually _monkey_ business."

She sniffed. "None of that either. Tomorrow we have big, long day and I want my skaters be well rested."

"It's not like I have any other options," Edward mumbled. I gave him a well deserved, sharp jab in the side.

"Ow! What was that for?" he complained.

I rolled my eyes. Maybe it would be better if he just had some sex. It just might be better than this moody attitude that he was heaving around with him.

"Well," Tatiana put on a gleaming, slightly spine-chilling grin. "I see you tomorrow. Get good rest. Eat lot of carbohydrate and protein. You need for energy."

"Of course," I responded automatically. It was customary for me to whip up a nice bowl of pasta for the dinner before a competition.

"I see you tomorrow," she bid us goodbye.

"So," Edward came up from behind me and rubbed my shoulders. It felt good. His strong hands were cool and comforting on my overheated body. "Are you nervous for tomorrow?"

"Hell yes."

"Well, it sure doesn't look like it," he answered with a glimmer in his eye.

"I've learned to conceal it over the years," I turned away, trying to not get hypnotized by his smoldering gaze. "Are you nervous?"

"No."

"Oh."

Lucky bastard.

"Do you want to know why?" he asked mock seriously.

"Sure."

"Because," he started. "When I think about how you'll be performing right next to me, the doubt goes away."

I just about melted on the spot.

"Oh," I managed to release a single word. It was pathetic.

I exhaled, not realizing that I'd been holding my breath.

He smiled and winked before bending back down to untie the rest of his skate. As for me, I waited until my heart rate slowed before attempting to stand back up.

* * *

As we neared his apartment, I caught sight of a small, dark haired figure perched atop Edward's front porch. She was sitting on the top step with her elbows against her knees and her head in her hands. Next to her was a blonde guy, probably her dad.

"Who's that?" I squinted as we pulled into the driveway.

"It's probably just another girl scout trying to sell me their damn cookies. Last year, one conned me into buying two hundred seventy seven boxes of thin mints," Edward scowled.

"They can be quite persuasive," I noted, remembering how I'd bought quite a few boxes myself at a stand in front of a grocery store. "I used to be a girl scout. Maybe that's why I've always have had a soft spot in my heart for them."

Edward cocked his eyebrow up in amusement.

"But my group was pretty snotty and spoiled. Their parents would always be the ones at the stands selling the cookies _for them_. I on the other hand had to do all the dirty work myself," I recalled bitterly.

Edward laughed. "If you sold cookies to me, you could just name the number you needed to sell and I'd whip out the wad of cash that I'd kept in my pockets."

Maybe my mind starting to twist things into everything perverted, but did he mean _something else_ by that?

"You keep a wad of cash in your jeans?"

"Not anymore. I learned my lesson after my cousin snuck in one night and fished it out of my pockets," he said cheerfully.

"Oh." Yup, I was going crazy. Being around Edward for extended periods of time could get you to start interpreting everything in its sexual way.

I looked back to the little girl, and she'd jumped up and was now waving her hands about frantically. The man beside her crossed his arms and sighed.

"This one seems pretty determined to get rid of some boxes," Edward commented dryly.

I took a closer look. "No, that isn't a girl scout," I gasped in a fit of giggles. "That's _Alice_! And _Jasper_! "

"Not my fault," he grumbled. "Besides those curves she's got going on, Alice could pass as one. She's like a miniature doll."

I slapped him lightly on the shoulder. "Well, she looks pretty flustered about something. Brace yourself."

Before Alice could pass out from overexcitement (it _has_ happened before. We'll save that story for another time.), I rushed over towards her.

"Isabella Marie Swan." Uh-oh. My full name coming from Alice was never a good sign.

"Here we go. _Again_," Jasper muttered. I eyed him sympathetically.

"Why wasn't I notified of your competition tomorrow _afternoon_?" she demanded.

_Well_, I thought to myself. _You see, I didn't really want to go through the dreaded process of trying on, hemming, and retrying on outfits…_

"You thought that you could get out of dress fitting, didn't you?" she accused.

"Uh, no, of course not… I…"

"Nice try, but I've been working like a cheetah on steroids since Tatiana called me this morning to ask how the dress was coming along! Imagine my surprise when she told me that you needed it _tomorrow_!"

"Well," I desperately tried to think of a way to get out of this.

"We didn't want to trouble you," a smooth voice came from behind me. Edward. _My savoir. _If anyone could get me out of this, it would be him. "Bella and I know how busy you are with your blooming fashion line."

She gave him a withering glare. "Shut your trap, pretty boy. I know better than that."

Even my strongest link couldn't deteriorate Alice. That was quite disconcerting.

She then did a double take at Edward's hair.

"What did you do to your..." for once, Alice was a loss of words. After a short moment, she regained her composure. "It looks terrible. Like a piece of slop."

"Thanks," Edward countered sardonically.

"Did you do it yourself? You know those self dyers only work when _I _use them!"

"No, I had it professionally done. The total cost was staggering," he said coolly. "Why, do you not think I got my money's worth?"

"Honey, you could have had Bella do it better than that. And trust me, that's really saying something," Alice flipped her short hair back.

Edward snorted.

"Why did you dye it anyways?" she inquired. "Your natural color was great."

I disagree. It was better than _just great_. It was _fabulous_. I missed it.

"It's complicated," Edward grinned at me.

I stuck my tongue out at him. The crooked smile on his face only widened.

"Very mature Bella," Alice scolded. "Put that thing back in there, before it catches flies."

Jasper shook his head and chuckled in Edward's direction. "Man, you are so whipped."

Alice kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"Then again, so am I," Jasper sighed, putting his arm around Alice.

She stepped aside and I caught an eyeful of a hot pink suitcase. I'm pretty sure Edward did too.

"What. Is. That?" Edward sputtered.

"It has your costumes in it, silly! I want you to try them on so that I can hem them overnight," Alice explained. "I may have to pull an all nighter to get these done…"

I groaned. "That's really not necessary, Alice. It's only a _local_ competition," I emphasized. "We don't need to wear our—"

"Yes you do," Jasper growled. "I didn't step in and out of Edward's to get her the measurements for nothing."

"I didn't have your measurements," Alice glared at Edward. "I know Bella's since I've fitted her before, but not yours! I figured that Jasper was about the same size as you, so I just worked off of him."

"You owe me," Jasper said weakly.

"It's chilly out here," I shivered as the wind howled. "Let's get inside."

Jasper started hoisting Alice's heavy suitcase over his shoulder, but she stopped him.

"I love you Jasper, but I don't trust anyone with my creations," Alice patted his shoulder.

Jasper grimaced. "I just don't want you to hurt yourself, that thing's kinda heavy…"

"Oh please," Alice waved her hand nonchalantly. To prove her point, she heaved it up with one hand. That girl may be tiny, but she's _strong_. Jasper looked to be on the verge of a heart attack.

"Hurry up now," she hustled us along. "I have a very limited time frame to work with."

Edward unlocked his front door and the four of us bustled in.

Jasper whistled. "Damn… You've got a nice place here. No wonder Bella wants to bunk with you."

Alice nodded her approval. "Whoever decorated it did a fantabulous job."

"Actually, his mother, Esme, did it," I smiled.

"Impressive…"

After a few more minutes of 'oohing' and 'ahhing' over Edward's apartment, Alice determinedly put her hands on her hips.

From this point forward, messing with the tiny pixy would be lethal.

She crouched down and unzipped her ostentatious suitcase.

"Now Alice," I warned in what I must say was a very reasonable tone, "I have the right to veto anything that I don't think goes with the music."

She gave me a pained look. "I know, I know, you want the dress to be simple and go with the 'Love Story' theme…"

I sighed. "Alright then, bring em out."

Eagerly, she flipped open the top and gingerly brought out a baby pink number **(1, 2)**.

My heart about exploded out of its chest.

"It's beautiful, Alice!" I squealed happily.

She never ceased to amaze me. It was just right. The light rose color matched Edward and my music _perfectly_, and it was simple enough to be elegant.

"I told you that you had nothing to worry about!" she chirped. "And you were afraid that I'd make it too 'flashy' or 'regal'."

Once again, Mary Alice Brandon has proven how well she knows me.

"Try it on," she urged. "It doesn't matter how pretty your dress is if it doesn't fit."

"Hold on, I want to see Edward's!" I insisted.

She nodded and turned her attention back to her suitcase.

"It took me a while to design his… I'm still not perfectly happy with it, but it'll do," she started pressing the creases out of the fabric.

Edward leaned against the wall nonchalantly, but I knew him well enough to know that he was dying to know what Alice had chosen for him.

She beamed at her handiwork before she held it up to the light for all of us to admire.

It was simply perfect and precisely what I'd wanted for Edward. The costume itself looked as if it had just stepped out of the 1970s movie that we were trying to portray.

"You've outdone yourself, Alice!"

I examined the neat stitching and hugged her. It was exactly how I'd imagined it. Simple, black, and sexy. **(1, 2) **

"Thank you," she shoved the outfit onto Edward's chest. "I need the men in the room to leave. Edward, go someplace to try that on and… Uh… Jasper, go eat something."

Once both men left, I started stripping.

"Besides the hair, Edward is looking mighty fine," she noted suggestively.

"Mmph," I grunted as I pulled my shirt over my head.

She started helping me into the dress. "Rose and I never get to talk to you anymore," she said sadly.

"I do miss you girls," I averted her puppy dog eyes.

"That _Edward_ is hogging up all your time," she shook her head unhappily. "You would think that something would have happened between you two by now…"

I bit my lip, wrestling with whether or not I should tell her about the kiss between me and Edward.

"Well…"

Her eyes narrowed at my tone. "Something _did_ happen, didn't it?"

"Well…" I tried again.

"Spill. Now," she bared her teeth.

"We kissed. But it took a turn for the worse," I admitted.

She jumped up so abruptly that I was afraid the material would tear.

"You _kissed_?" she shrieked.

I cringed, knowing that Edward and Jasper could hear through the whole house.

"Shh it—"

"Why don't you ever tell me these things any more? You got your _first_ kiss!"

I clamped my hand over her mouth to quiet her.

A knock sounded on the door. "Alice, Bella, I'm in my costume," Edward notified. How the hell do men change so fast?

"Just a minute," Alice sang.

Quickly, she slid the straps over my shoulders.

"This conversation isn't over," she hissed before opening the door for Edward.

"The sleeves are a little long, but otherwise, I think it's good," Edward informed us.

I eyed him up and down, trying to keep my jaw from dropping. If was possible, he looked even more devilishly handsome than before.

"You look—" I started.

"—Great," Edward finished.

We both stared at each other. "Thanks," we said simultaneously.

"You guys go like peanut butter and jelly. Finishing sentences for each other and all, how cute," Alice put her hand over her heart.

I blushed while Edward snickered.

"Bella's fits flawlessly. I know her body as if it were my own," Alice said proudly.

Edward's eyes lit up at that comment. I gave him an annoyed look. Pervert.

She grabbed Edward's arm and inspected his sleeves. "I'll take about half an inch off of these. Otherwise, I think everything else fits fine."

"Yup, thanks Alice." He paused. "You too Jasper… You know for helping Alice with my sizing and all."

Alice started packing everything back into her suitcase, careful not to wrinkle anything.

"Jazz and I better get going if I want to finish this," she picked up her bags. Jasper frantically tried to help her, but she waved him off. "I'll be here early tomorrow morning before the competition. Have a good sleep, guys."

"Thanks Alice," I readjusted my hair that was falling out of its ponytail.

"And…" she raised her brow.

"And I'm glad that no matter how torturous I find clothes, we took the time for this fitting…" I added.

She nodded, satisfied.

It was silent for a moment before Edward spoke up.

"My dad—Carlisle Cullen— is looking for someone to design his suits."

Alice's eyes widened and she accidentally dropped her suitcase onto Jasper's foot in excitement.

"Shit!" Jasper cursed, massaging his crushed toes.

Alice fluttered over him apologetically. "Sorry baby, I'm so sorry!" She quieted, suddenly thoughtful. "I'll make it up to you _tonight_," she batted her eyelashes flirtatiously. _That_ immediately shut Jasper up.

"Perhaps I could drop a good word for you," Edward suggested.

Alice charged up to him and squeezed his waist in her tiny arms.

"Thank you, thank you, _thank you_!" she jumped up and down. "Well, I won't need coffee to pull an all nighter tonight! I'm too keyed up to sleep now!"

Jasper cheered, obviously thinking about how he was going to 'get some'.

I laughed, discreetly pushing them both out the door. I was off the hook for telling her what happened between Edward and I. For now.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

By the way, thanks for all the reviews everyone! I practically got more reviews in the first hour the last chapter was posted than the previous ones!

I know I promised the competition this chapter, but it just didn't play out that way. However, I **PROMISE** that it'll be in the next! Eek! I'm so excited!

Oh, and if you didn't notice, **Bella and Edward's competition outfit is on my profile. If you haven't heard their music that they're skating to, 'Love Story', that's on my profile too.** Lemme know what you think with either a PM or review.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	32. Spotlight

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

MY SINCEREST APOLOGIES FOR THE DELAY

To refresh your memory, bella/edward just had a visit from Alice to fit their costumes (POSTED ON PROFILE!!)... they're psyching themself up for their competition now!

**Lastly**, for those of you that caught my little mistake in the last chapter, thanks. When I have time I'll go back and reedit that. Alice and Jasper HAVE been in Edward's apartment before, so they shouldn't have acted like it was their first time. Thanks for catching that!

* * *

_Chapter 32: Spotlight _

**BPOV:**

I bid Edward goodnight before retiring up to my room.

He nodded, with a preoccupied look haunting his face.

The nerves of what was coming tomorrow were making us both a tad jumpier than normal.

Just earlier, when I had been cooking dinner, I had been so immersed in my thoughts about tomorrow's competition that I'd just about toppled into the pan when Edward came up from behind to ask if I needed any help. Luckily, he caught me just in time before my eyebrows could sear off.

Dinner had been quiet as we made small talk, much like the first dinner we'd had together.

I jumped as a knock sounded on my door. Trying to gather my composure, I chuckled weakly at my own antics.

Purposely, I didn't respond to the tapping.

It was hard to explain, but I loved hearing Edward knock on my door. His taps had a certain masculine beat to them that I could never get tired of.

The knock sounded again. I sighed in content.

"Come in," I finally said.

"Jeez," Edward came in; his hair glistened with beads of water from his shower. "Don't you ever hear me the _first_ time I knock?"

"You knocked more than once?" I asked innocently. "Hmm. I must have been caught up in my thoughts."

He nodded, suddenly distracted. I laughed silently. Normally, I was a terrible liar and people could see right through me. I couldn't believe he'd bought that.

"What brings you to this neck of the woods?" I teased him.

He stared at the wall uncomfortably. "Well…" he began. "I was just wondering if you could, er, wear that lavender and pink polka dotted bra with hearts of yours tomorrow."

My brow flew above my hairline.

"What?" Incredulity seeped through my tone.

He shifted his weight from side to side. "Do you not know which one I'm talking about?"

"I know which one you're talking about—pink polka hearts with lavender trim, right?" I confirmed.

"Yeah," he ran his hand through his hair sheepishly.

"Of course," I answered reasonably. "Under one condition though."

He nodded, willing me to proceed.

"Why?"

The burning curiosity was eating away at me.

"It's just that it failed to escape my notice that we skate better when you wear it," he blushed.

I giggled. "So you're telling me that if I wear _this _bra," I went to my dresser to take it out, "That we'll skate well tomorrow?"

He didn't respond, only stare at the object dangling in my hands with a dazed look in his eyes.

"Well then, _by all means_, I'll make sure I put this one on tomorrow," I winked, placing the garment on my desk so that I wouldn't forget to wear it.

Edward cleared his throat and started making his way out of my room.

"Just for the record," I spoke up before he could leave. "How do you know what bra I wear on what days?"

He shook his head trying to avoid the subject and advanced towards the door.

I ran passed him and blocked the exit.

"Not so fast, champ. Tell me."

He exhaled in resignation. "I look down your shirt when you bend over to tie your skates."

I should have known. That sneaky little bastard…

He took advantage of my momentary distraction and slinked out the door.

"Night," he called on his way out.

"Night," I grumbled back, already plotting a way to get back at him. Should I go through his boxers? Nah. It just wasn't the same for girls. He would probably just end up taking it as a compliment.

As soon as he was gone, I pulled on my lucky nightgown and closed the curtains.

It was only eight, and still bright outside, but I wanted to get as much sleep as I could. I would need all the energy I could get for tomorrow.

I slid under the covers and closed my eyes, willing myself to sleep.

Unfortunately, no matter how many sheep I counted I couldn't lull myself into a peaceful slumber. The lingering doubts were still pestering me at the back of my mind.

It was my very nature to worry. I couldn't help it!

What if I did screwed it up for us and Edward finally came to his senses and slithered back into Tanya's grasp? I'm positive that that bitch is somewhere out there, ready to snatch up Edward at the right moment.

There were so many fish in the sea that he could choose from besides me. If that happens, I'm screwed.

After more than an hour of tossing and turning, I gave up.

There was no way I would be able to fall asleep without Edward's reassurance. I had to _know_ that he wasn't going to waltz away the moment I made a mistake.

Quietly, I closed my own door and scurried down the narrow hallway to Edward's room, praying that he hadn't locked it.

I twisted the knob open and tiptoed to his bedside.

His face was so peaceful and if I dare say, slightly angelic, that it pained me to awaken him.

I shook his shoulder tenderly. "Edward," I murmured.

His soft snores ceased and his eyelids started fluttering open. "What the—"

"Shh, it's just me," I whispered.

"Bella?" he reached towards me groggily. "What's up?"

The moonlight sufficiently lighted his room enough so that I could dimly make out the silhouette of his face.

"I can't sleep," I admitted.

He half chuckled, half yawned.

"Do you want me to go over to your room to sing you to sleep?" he offered. His voice dripped with fatigue.

My heart did a three sixty in my chest. He would do that for me?

"No I- I was wondering if I could, um, stay here with you tonight."

He sprung up, instantly alert. Well, that sure woke him up.

"What?" All traces of previous drowsiness were gone.

"If it's not too much trouble," I hedged.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Alright," he scooted over and patted the spot beside him.

I slinked in. The sheets were still warm from his body heat. As soon as my skin met the warmth, weariness washed over me. I yawned loudly.

"Get some sleep, Bella. You'll need it for tomorrow."

"Okay, night."

"Goodnight, Bella," my name rolled gently off his tongue.

It was silent for another moment. Too silent for my liking.

"Hey, Edward?"

"Yes?" his manner was not at all impatient or restless and I was grateful for that. A small smile rested on his lips.

"Do you think you could sing a little anyways?" I asked hesitantly.

"Sure. Just sleep, Bella."

He started humming a familiar melody. Instantly my eye lids began to droop heavier and heavier.

"Thanks," I whispered.

"No problem. Sleep, Bella…" was the last thing I heard before drifting into a state of unconsciousness.

* * *

I awoke the next morning curled up in the arms of a muscular man. A absentminded smile formed on my face. I must be dreaming. There was a better chance that Alice would let me wear sweats out than me waking up next to—

HOLY SHIT.

My eyes flew open, meeting Edward's green amused ones. It made me wonder how long he had been staring at me like that.

"Good morning," he murmured, stroking my hair softly.

"How did… What is…Crap…Why are…" I sputtered frantically. Trying to keep the last shred of dignity I had remaining, I managed to string more than two words together. "How long have you been up?"

"About an hour," he replied cheerfully.

"Oh."

"I wasn't too much of a beg hog was I? Alice always complains about how…" I tried to speak without opening my mouth. I didn't want to risk killing the poor guy with a whiff of my morning breath on our big day.

"No, your bed manners are perfect—never leaving your half of the bed."

Was it me hallucinating again, or did I hint a little disappointment under his tone.

"You slept like a baby," he smirked.

_Huh_. I thought wryly. _I wonder why? _

"Hmph," I sniffed. "It must have been because your bed is extra comfortable."

He snorted. "Are you sure it was because of the _bed_ and not me?"

"Your ego is unbelievable."

"It's not being egotistical if it's _true_," he raised his eyebrows up and down foolishly.

I tried not to crack up, but ended up giving in.

He sat up and cracked his neck.

Trying not to be too obvious, I gawked at how serene he looked when he first got out of bed.

"Your bed head is adorable."

Instantly, I clapped my hand over my mouth. That hadn't meant to slip out.

"Thanks," he replied dryly. I was thankful that he misinterpreted my outburst. Instead of taking it as a compliment, he thought I was making fun of him.

"What time did Alice say she was going to be here?"

"Any minute now," I looked at the alarm clock by his side.

"I just hope she doesn't wear me out before the competition even starts," Edward remarked.

I sniggered and looked out the window. Sure enough, Alice's yellow Porsche was parked in the driveway and she was making her way up to the doorbell. In her hands was the same hot pink suitcase. I watched her index finger press the doorbell as it rang.

We looked at each other expectantly.

"Aren't you going to go get the door, Edward? This is your house," I pointed out.

It was clear that neither of us wanted to have first dibs on Alice's wrath.

"I think not. She's _your_ best friend, you should be the one greeting her," he replied.

We then had an intense staring contest—which of course he won; I shouldn't have even bothered trying.

"What took so long to get to the door? I have so much to cover this morning!" Alice complained as she burst into the living room.

"Good morning to you too, Alice," I said sarcastically.

She swung her suitcase down so it sat flat on the ground and unzipped it.

"There's no time for 'good mornings' or anything like that, I only have two hours to make you _and_ Edward perfect!" she carped. "I knew I should have come an hour earlier."

Thank goodness she didn't. Two hours of fawning over my appearance already pushed my buttons.

"Well, I guess since Edward isn't out yet I'll work on you first, Bella," she grinned. Alice loved working with my long hair, claiming that when hair was longer it opened _so many_ options for her.

I groaned. That little stinker, Edward, was probably listening behind the wall rejoicing that I was going to sit in the hot seat first.

"So, Bella," she grinned like a canary. "We never finished our conversation yesterday."

I cussed under my breath. I thought she'd forgotten about that.

"So what did he taste like?" she inquired, as if it were a perfectly normal question.

"Alice!" I chastised her. "I don't kiss and tell. Plus, he's probably eavesdropping nearby."

Expertly, she started wetting my hair so it was easier to work with.

"He tasted like a peppermint candy cane," I admitted quietly.

"Mmm." She closed her eyes and licked her lips. "Any tongue?"

I blushed furiously. "No. I can't even believe people do that tongue thing," I made a face, disgusted. "It's gross."

She gave me a weird look. "French kissing is romantic. You'll see."

"Bleh, no thank you."

"So, how long has it been going on?"

"It only happened once and we're keeping it that way," I informed her firmly. "I don't think it's wise for us to do stuff like _that_."

"How so?" she demanded. "I think you guys would make the cutest couple."

"The first time didn't end well."

Her eyes as well as her tugs on my hair softened. "I need details," she demanded.

"There's not much to say. His ex showed up and—"

"Ohhhh. Say no more," she nodded omnisciently.

"I knew it was a bad from the first place. I still don't understand why I let it happen when I knew it would be a mistake," I recalled bitterly.

She sprayed my hair with some cold spray. A shiver ran down my spine.

"So you're not gonna try anymore?" she asked disappointedly.

"There's no point."

"Well _I _think it's worth another shot. Not everything works on the first try."

Of course, Edward chose that moment to stride right in.

"Alice, how nice to see you again," he greeted her with a alluring smile. Even Alice was immune to his charm and may as well have melted on the spot.

That man is such a kiss up. However, I admit that he's good at it.

After a few more seconds, Alice snapped out of her 'dazzled' trance. Instantly, her eyes narrowed into tight slits.

"How many times do I have to tell you that flattery doesn't work on me?" she accused him. "I'm still styling you the way I want to no matter how many cute little comments you throw at me."

He averted his eyes from hers, looking dejected.

I pumped my arm triumphantly. I knew there was a reason why I liked Alice—she was [almost] immune to Edward.

Edward observed sulkily as she pinned in the last bobby pin.

She then proceeded to put on a mask of makeup. Competitions were the only time that I let Alice style and pluck me as much as she wanted without _much_ complaint. Whatever impressed the judges was fine by me.

Finally, she shooed Edward out of the room to change into his outfit so I could change into mine.

As she pulled the pink costume out, I noticed that she'd added a few rhinestones, but kept my mouth shut. Getting in arguments before competitions always got me all wired and stress out.

I saw a small smile graze her lips at my accommodating silence.

"I still think you and Edward belong together," she suddenly spoke up.

I moaned again. "Will you just give it a rest?"

"Please," she pleaded as I stepped into the dress.

I gave a half hearted sigh. "No."

"I'm not asking you to ask him out or anything. I just want you to keep an open mind about having a _real_ relationship with him," she insisted.

"I already _am_ keeping an open mind."

"No you're not. I know you like him, which is making you scared. Especially since he's your skating partner." she said, zipping up the back of my dress.

"Shut up."

She was right.

"All I'm asking you to do is go with the flow. Be optimistic about all this! That was my attitude towards Jasper and look where we are now!"

"Easy for you to say," I grumbled.

"Really Bella, I was talking to Rose about—"

"Gah! You already told Rose?" I huffed.

"We _are _your best friends, and it _is_ in our nature to meddle about in your love life," Alice claimed.

I cracked a tiny smile. "Alright," I finally acquiesced.

Suddenly, Edward barged in. Luckily, I was already dressed.

"Didn't your mother teach you to knock before you entered a room? I could have been naked in here!" I protested.

"So," he pointed at me and chuckled, "You gonna start keeping an open mind 'bout me?"

I gasped. The bastard had been listening in on our entire conversation!

"You-I can't believe—"

"I take it back," Alice interrupted my sputtering. "You can drop this bitch like a bad habit," she told me, glaring disdainfully.

Edward crossed his arms over his chest and smirked. "She's already attached."

True. I was.

I wasn't even sure if I'd be able to sleep without him tonight.

Hell yeah. That's how screwed up I was. Gah. I was _dependent_.

Alice started examining the sleeves that she'd hemmed for him.

"They're the perfect length, thanks Alice," Edward bowed his head graciously.

"You look absolutely dashing," Alice beamed at his compliment. I nodded in agreement.

"Thank you. Since I already look so 'absolutely dashing', does that mean that you don't have to do my hair?"

Alice smirked. "Nice try, but your hair needs a little gel so that it's not flying around like crazy."

"That's sounds reasonable," Edward complied. I shook my head. He didn't know what he was getting himself into.

Half an hour later, Edward claimed that his scalp hurt like 'the worst kind of shit' and that he would never trust Alice with his 'perfect' locks again.

However, his 'perfect' locks looked great. They were flawlessly mussed up to appear casual, but neat enough to be presentable.

"You guys look fabulous. My work here is done," Alice said, starting to choke up. Her eyes were getting a little teary.

I rolled my eyes. "Thanks Alice, we owe it all to you."

She nodded. "I know."

Edward laughed at her humbleness.

"Good luck you two, we'll all be watching for y'all in the stands!"

Quickly, she me in for a hug and whispered, '_Go with the flow_,' low enough so that Edward couldn't hear.

She then proceeded to embrace Edward and I think she whispered something in his ear as well. My ears strained to hear, and I swear it was something along the lines of: '_She'll come around_.'

She couldn't possibly mean me, right?

* * *

"Edward!"

I grimaced, knowing whose voice that was.

Victoria.

We'd just arrived at the competition rink minutes ago, and already things were looking down.

I gave Edward a pleading gaze to ignore her and keep walking. To my relief, he caught on my message, but Victoria caught up to us before we could magically disappear.

"Are _you_ competing with _her_?" she pointed at my incredulously.

Edward nodded. His jaw was tense, signaling that he was gritting his teeth.

"Wow!" she laughed sourly. "James!" she called her partner over.

James rushed up to her side—like arm candy.

"Guess what I just found out?" she giggled. "Edward and Bella are _still_ together! I guess I lost the bet!"

"You bet on whether or not we would last?" I hissed.

"I was so sure I would win," Victoria mused.

I seethed angrily, but Edward held me back.

"Let's go," he murmured.

"Don't waste your time," Victoria looked him square in the eye. "She drove away four-or is it five?-men before you."

I looked away.

"Anyways, _good luck_," she sneered as Edward pulled me away. "You'll need all that you can get."

Trying to calm the intoxicating stress that was flowing through my veins, Edward led me to the wall decorated in papers that had the skating order.

My eyes flitted across each page, trying to find our name.

I first caught sight of Victoria and James's. They were skating third in our group. Edward and I were assigned to the eighth slot.

--

Our competitors before us were finishing up their routines and we were going on in ten minutes. Quickly, I started unzipping my warm up pants. Edward observed with his mouth slightly ajar.

"I have a dress under these pants," I reminded Edward.

"It's still sexy to watch you take them off," he grinned lazily.

"You're impossible."

"Miss Swan, Mr. Cullen—five minute left," Tatiana notified. She was all dressed up in a faux fur coat, heels and all for the informal event.

Five minutes. I jumped around and started giving myself internal pep talks to calm my nerves. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Edward doing the same.

A feeling of anxiety bubbled deep within me. It was hard to explain. I was nervous—which was expected, but a certain degree of excitement also rushed through the center of my bones.

This was it.

The couple before us glided off with a frown on their faces. Obviously they hadn't done well.

"Edward Cullen, Isabella Swan—you're on," the ice monitor said.

Taking a deep breath, I stepped onto the bright white ice.

"Show time," Edward whispered under his breath.

"Kick other skater ass!" Tatiana said, lightening my spirits a bit.

Edward took my hand and secured it in his own. In response, I gave it a tight squeeze.

My heart clenched as I saw a few people in the stands leaving to go on a bathroom break or buy a snack since we were a lesser known couple.

Nevertheless, we both smiled at the remaining crowd and glided into the spotlight as the announcer introduced us to the audience. I barely heard anything besides Edward and my controlled breathing.

It felt as if the whole world had stopped and only Edward and I were left.

I think there was enough adrenaline rushing through me that I probably could have broken my leg and not have felt it.

We eased into our beginning pose and shortly after, the beginning notes of 'Love Story' flowed through the arena.

For this competition, we had decided to pack all our hardest elements at the beginning while we were on fresh legs.

The first element was our throw triple salchow.

I prepared myself for take off, relying on my muscle memory to be there for me. When you get to an actual competition, it's hard to _think_ when you're competing. Instead, you have to trust the technique that you'd perfected in practice.

A rush of memories flooded through my head.

I remembered the first day that Edward and I had skated together, and how I'd wiped out on our first jump attempts. It amazed me how far we'd come.

As he threw me into the air, I held my breath, urging my legs to be there for me when I landed.

They were.

We both exhaled in relief and continued the routine.

"That was great," he mouthed, as we danced through the choreography.

Call it cliché, but at that very moment, when I saw the sparkle in his eye, I knew everything would be okay.

With renewed confidence, we skated a clean, textbook performance. There wasn't a single bobble in our footwork, the landings of our jumps were solid, and every spin was centered.

As we struck our ending poses, I thought my face would break from smiling too hard.

The applause had erupted in the crowd, and I saw Esme and Carlisle giving us a standing ovation. Many others in the audience followed their suit.

Even Tatiana on the sidelines, watching, was banging the boards with our skate guards in triumph.

The music ended and we were both out of breath, somehow, Edward managed picked me up and twirl me around.

I couldn't think. It was almost surreal and the impact was finally settling in.

We had done it.

We had accomplished a successful debut.

He opened his mouth to say something, but I was too caught up in the moment to hear any of the words.

Without another thought, I threw my arms around him and pressed our lips together.

What had Alice said? Oh yeah. _Go with the flow_. I hope this is 'flow-y' enough for her.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

**EEK! So they kiss again!**

I tried my best to get their first competition 'just right'. Let me know your thoughts.

For those of you that wanted me to write Edward/Bella's competition play by play, I sincerely TRIED, but it didn't work out as well as I hoped. Thanks for understanding C:

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	33. I Love Girls

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**For the sake of the story, we're going to have the pairs skating scoring system go from a scale from 1-10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best. I know that this isn't how it works in the real skating business, but I found that after much trial and error, it is the way that is easiest to understand. **

We hit 1000. Thanks for all the reviews guys. Gotta love ya.

* * *

_Chapter 33: I Love Girls _

**EPOV:**

One moment I was staring joyously into Bella's eyes in celebration of our perfect skate, and next moment, her lips crashed on mine.

The audience erupted into a thundering applause around us, but I barely heard them.

Bella was kissing me. In public. On the ice.

_Well_, I thought. _This was unexpected._

Nevertheless, I followed my natural male instinct and moved with her.

I felt her smile against my lips when I started responding.

I'm not sure how long we just stayed like that. The crowd 'aww-ed' at our display of affection repeatedly before we broke apart—both gasping for breath.

"Bella…" I whispered into her neck as we embraced.

She sighed and tightened her hold on me.

It felt like we'd come a full circle the past couple of weeks.

Finally, I felt that we could _really _put the 'Tanya fiasco' behind us. For me, the disastrous kiss and Tanya's appearance seemed like centuries ago.

Lately, it seemed like she was finally letting her guard down, more and more often, but I still saw the lingering worry in her eyes. Yesterday, when she made the decision to sleep beside me, hope swelled through my chest. Perhaps she was starting to let go of my past wrong doings.

Other times, we'd be walking through the park and when I'd reach for her hand, she'd 'conveniently' cross her arms over her chest. At moments like that, I knew that she still hung onto her persistent doubts. Maybe after today she could finally look beyond that.

She pulled away and pecked my lips gently, one last time. I gave a throaty chuckle and stroked her hair.

The rest of the audience had stood to give us a standing ovation. However, it was for different reasons.

Some because, well they really enjoyed _both_ our performances (the skate and the kiss), others—specifically, Emmett—looked ready to throw themselves over the boards to pull us apart. Tatiana was the other who was giving us disapproving looks.

Nevertheless I hugged Bella and pulled her tight against me.

"Don't listen to what others say," I whispered, loud enough for her to hear. "Personally, it was the best damn thing that's ever happened to me."

"The skate or the kiss?"

"Both," I winked.

We glided, hand in hand off the ice. I felt bad for the next couple that was supposed to skate after us. They looked nervous out of their wits.

Bella must of have sensed this too because when we passed them she passed her warmest best wishes.

To my utter shock, the girl just sneered back and turned her nose up.

"Slut," the guy mouthed.

Bella blinked, stunned by the low blow. Her mouth crinkled into a thin line.

"She is the _farthest_ thing from a slut," I growled at them both and shoved our bodies away before I did anything stupid that could get Bella and I suspended from competitions.

I took one look at Bella, and knew the damage had been done. With just one glance, I could see her doubting herself again. Damn it.

"Bella," I spoke her name more harshly than intended. "Don't listen to them. What we have is special and I don't want anyone making you think otherwise."

She shook her head and refused to meet my eye.

"I can't believe I just attacked you out there like a whore," she shook her head sadly.

I shook her shoulders frantically trying to shake the doubt out of her.

"Stop thinking like that!"

"It was a mistake," she returned coolly.

I slapped my forehead. Why did everything have to get screwed up the minute they get better? I'm starting to think this is some kind of curse. The first time we kiss, Tanya flounces in. Now, the second time, people are calling her a slut for it.

"I don't think it was a mistake!" I yelled, exasperated.

The ice monitor gave me a startled look at my angry outburst.

I calmed my tone. "It couldn't have been a mistake if we both _liked_ it," I paused, "You liked it, right?"

I expected her to shoot back a witty remark or ignore my question to ask her own, but it never came.

"Yeah," she admitted quietly.

_Good_. I thought to myself. _'Cuz I sure as hell did too. More than I should have._

"So what are you—" I started, but Tatiana was stomping furiously over to us and grabbed our arm to sit in the area where we wait for our scores.

"What my eye see out there? I let you _live_ in same house and now you guys kissing all over place! Judges don't want to see you kissing! Get a room!" she ranted.

"I—"

"How long this going on?" Tatiana demanded.

I pretended to look at my imaginary watch. "Uh, approximately three minutes."

There was a bewildered silence.

"You made me very horny when I watch you," Tatiana finally confessed.

I drew back, disgusted.

Coaches aren't supposed to get horny.

Apparently, from Bella's repulsed yelp, she seemed to agree.

"Ew!" Bella shrieked, finally participating in the conversation. "TMI, Tatiana. _Way_ TMI."

"What is this TMI meaning?" Tatiana glowered, obviously frustrated with our hip American lingo.

"Too much information," Bella held her hands in front of her and backed away.

"You think I am TMI?" Tatiana went on. "You guys kiss out there is TMI! I don't think I—"

She was cut off by the speakers emphasizing the boom of the microphone being picked up by the announcer.

"And the scores for Isabella Swan and Edward Cullen…"

The arena grew deadly silent. I took Bella's hand and squeezed it, trying to tell her that no matter what happened, I wouldn't regret the kiss.

Clearing his throat again, the announcer began listing the various results.

"Seven, eight, seven, seven, seven…"

The crowd booed at the lower than expected scores.

The announcer continued… "Seven, six, seven, seven, seven."

I sucked in a breath.

"Isabella Swan and Edward Cullen are currently in second place."

Disappointment flood through me, but I tried not to let it show. We were so close, yet so far away from the top podium.

"I don't get it," Bella murmured, dropping our hands down.

I looked out towards the bleachers and saw much of the crowd was in a sea of confusion as well.

The scores and the splendor of our performance just didn't match up.

"Was it because we kissed at the end?" Bella asked, immediately taking the blame to herself. "Do the judges not like that or something?"

Tatiana shook her head and clucked her tongue. "No, Isabella, I do not think that. I think it because you guys new. You guys on debut. Judge more comfortable make James and Victor first place since they better known."

Funny how a few letters off Victoria's name could make it sound hilarious.

I stood and ran my hands through my hair angrily. "That's bullshit! The judging panel was biased!"

Bella rubbed my shoulder trying to soothe my raging emotions, but I knew she was disappointed as well. Unlike me, she was strong and keeping her tongue. Figures.

"Welcome to the skating business," Bella kissed me on the cheek softly, loosening my clenched fists like magic. She blushed when the audience 'aww-ed' again.

"I still think it's a buncha bull," I sighed.

"I know."

Something told me that this wasn't the first time something like this had happened to her. Obviously, she had a lot of experience in this department.

The judges had spoken, and what was done was done. Hell, as much as I wanted to, I couldn't control their decisions, only myself. I had to be strong for Bella.

Victoria pranced over and hugged Bella unusually sweetly. Bella returned the friendly gesture. I cocked an eyebrow at the feigned exchange.

The spectators clapped at their show of sportsmanship. I felt like vomiting. Hypocrites.

"What great competitors," the announcer cooed as the girls hugged.

For the sake of Bella and my image, I shook James's hand. It still made me uncomfortable to be around him after discovering the things he did to Bella.

Oh well, ultimately his actions of dropping her for Victoria were _his_ loss and _my_ gain.

Bella blew kisses and I waved one last time to the remaining onlookers before heading back to the skaters' locker room to change into our tennis shoes.

"Isabella! Edward!" I heard an unfamiliar voice call.

We both spun around to see a few reporters with their notebooks ready, running up to us.

The next thing we knew, there was a swarm of media buzzing around us.

I didn't understand. We weren't even the winners, so what were all these people here for? I looked over towards James and Victoria to see him scowling at the attention we were getting. There were only one or two reporters questioning them, and not at all frantically.

Bella gave me a puzzled look, which I returned.

"Are you guys dating?" one shouted.

Bella tensed up beside me. Quickly, I tried to hurry her away from the video cameras, paper, and pens. She was still insecure about our relationship, and I didn't need these people worsening it.

Still, I thought that I should have known from the beginning. The media wasn't here for the _skating_; they were here for the _drama_ that ignited beyond the ice.

Camera flashes went off, blinding me momentarily. I held my hand in front of my eyes to shield them.

"Miss Swan! Is Edward a good kisser?" another jumped in front of us with a microphone in hand.

"Ignore them," I mouthed to her.

She bit her lip and continued following me to safety.

"Aw c'mon doll face, you don't need to listen to _him_! Forks wants to know!" a photographer with a menacing smile blocked our path.

I growled, which he as well as a few others snapped a photo of.

How lovely.

The paparazzi grabbed Bella's arm with his grubby hands to stop her.

That's when I lost it. They could yell, shove, but not _touch_.

"Get your fucking hands off of her," I snarled lowly.

Taking one look at what must have been a murderous expression on my face, the sleaze extracted his hands away.

Hopefully that'll keep the _others_ from trying anything.

Bella hid her face in my chest and kept walking. It was clear that she wasn't used to the attention of the media. If we were going to get famous, we'd have to work on that aspect.

As for myself, I'd already had my share of experiences with the paparazzi since Carlisle was so well known back in Chicago.

_Isabella! Edward! Edward! Isabella! _The reporters' frantic voices echoed behind us.

I pulled Bella with me into the skater's refreshment room where the cameras weren't permitted in.

We sat together on the bench and let out a relieved breath.

"Are you alright?" I asked concernedly.

She nodded. "Just kind of surprised. I don't get why they would want to interview _us_. We didn't even win."

I chuckled darkly.

"It's a small town and you're the chief's daughter. I think the newspapers are willing to settle for any story that's out of the ordinary."

It was quiet for another moment while we unlaced our skates. The only sound was the faint music that was coming from the other events going on in the arena.

"You were right," she said out of the blue.

In perplex, I tilted my head to the right questionably but decided to go along with it.

"Of course I was," I grinned.

She snorted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You don't even know what you were right about."

"Bella, hun, if you haven't figure it out yet, I'm right 99.9% of the time," I informed her, trying to lighten the mood.

Her chest heaved up and down as she giggled and pretended to seal her lips.

I surrendered with a sigh. My curiosity always got the best of me.

"Alright, what was I right about?"

"The bra! It _is_ lucky!" she laughed. "I guess I'll be wearing this one every competition now."

"I wouldn't mind if you decided to wear it everyday," I suggested slyly. Then I thought about what I just said. "No! I take it back. The others are pretty nice too."

She smirked.

Shit. I was _so_ whipped.

I never thought this day would come, but I'd fallen _hard _(pun intended) for this woman.

"Do you think it's safe to go back out now?" Bella asked, listening for any signs of newscasters ready to pounce outside the door.

"Probably. But if not, I'll be there to protect you."

"You are so—"

"Chivalrous, smart, sexy, strong, brave?" I cut her off hopefully.

"I was going to say bigheaded or egotisical," her eyes sparkled with amusement as my expectant smile turned into a frown.

She chuckled, "But I guess you _are_ _four _out of _five_ of those things."

My grin widened, and then faltered.

"What do you mean only four of the five?" I demanded.

She shook her head secretively and started making her way to the door.

"Wait, Bella!" I reached towards her. "Which four?"

Her hand reached for the knob playfully. "C'mon champ, I need protection."

"Bell-aaa," I whined.

"Don't gripe, it's unattractive," she scolded me.

I hate girls—unpleasant creatures that God created to torture the male species.

Without any warning, she swooped back towards me and pecked me softly on the lips. My eyes were wide open—taken by surprise by her spontaneous move.

"Edward…" the way she spoke my name made it rich, like honey.

I love girls. Period.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

+++You may have noticed that updates are coming MUCH more unfrequently than they were before. I'd hate to be an author that starts out strong with updates, but slowly fizzles out. I assure you that this story WILL be finished, regardless of how long it takes. Thanks for your understanding.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	34. As Seen On TV

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

Happy April Fools

* * *

_Chapter 34: As Seen On TV_

**BPOV:**

_"Edward, you're shaking like a petrified Chihuahua."_

Nevertheless, I found his terror it highly entertaining.

"Fuck, yes! Tell me something I don't know," he retorted temperamentally.

Edward, as always, was being a huge drama king. Apparently he thinks Emmett will tear him down limb by limb because of our little kiss. Personally, I think he's just overreacting, but maybe he's diagnosed with Emmett-phobia.

"I'm sure it'll be fine. _I_ was the one who made the move anyways," I reasoned.

I put one hand on his shoulder to still his jumpy movement. His face was turning a paler and paler shade by the second. It was starting to worry me.

Maybe kissing him _was_ a mistake.

_Nah… _

I chuckled at my own reaction to the very thought.

He shuddered. "Bella, hun, you don't understand. I signed an oath saying that I wouldn't do mess with you the slightest bit sexually, physically _or mentally_."

"The mentally harassing part was doomed from the start," I groaned, thinking about how many nights I'd lay awake unable to push thoughts of Edward out of my mind.

"Yeah, well I pretty much I signed my life over to Emmett. I've learned that when a guy like me fights against a big guy like Emmett, the guy like me ends up in the hospital."

I threw my hands up into the air. "Why the hell did you sign the damn thing then? Stupid. We both knew this was coming and you went ahead and signed a contract?"

Edward looked up at me innocently. "What do you mean that 'we both new this was coming'? I sure as hell didn't."

There was a thoughtful pause.

"So what you're saying is that you planned this all along? I'll make note of that. Apparently Isabella Swan liked me all along—well at least since that day I _seduced_ her in the coffee shop. Huh. Well normally the game of 'hard to get' doesn't last _four months_," he pouted.

I scoffed. "To me, you were the farthest thing away from seductive when you flirted with me on that first day at Starbucks."

"Always in denial…" he muttered.

"That's it!" I pushed him away. "I'm going to watch Emmett pummel you and enjoy every second of it."

"Hell yes," Emmett's familiar voice came from behind.

Edward jumped off his seat and his face turned snow white.

"F-fuck," he whispered.

"Not with Bella you don't," Emmett growled. "I have the contract right here."

He patted his jean pocket.

"You brought it with you?" I asked dryly.

"Everywhere I go," Emmett returned triumphantly, taking a folded piece of computer paper out.

I snatched it from his hand. "Give me that."

_I, Edmund Cullen, do solemnly swear (of affirm) that I will __faithfully provide__ for Isabella Swan. I will to the best of my ability, __preserve__, __protect__, and __defend__ her. I will __never __sexually harass her in __any__ way. This includes both __physically__ and __mentally__. If I do, I give __Emmett Swan__ and __Jasper Whitlock__ permission to __beat__ the __living daylights__ out of me_

My eyes scanned the words, but I barely processed them. All I could think was: _Edward is stupid. Edward is stupid. Edward is stupid._

"Uhh, isn't this pretty much a replica of the presidential oath?" I inquired. I skimmed the paper again. "It is! Wow, Emmett. How original. Isn't the presidential oath copyrighted though?"

He seized the document from my grasp.

"In my defense, I didn't have a lot of time to whip this shit up. Hell, if the presidential people were the ones who wrote it, it must be pretty good," Emmett shot back.

I snorted and grabbed the paper back to rip it in half.

"Hey! I didn't save that onto my computer! Now I have to type it out again!" Emmett protested, trying to save the scraps left of his precious contract.

"It's only a few lines," I rolled my eyes at his childishness.

Rosalie suddenly showed up out of no where beside us. She put a comforting arm around Emmett's shoulders.

"Oh," she sighed. "Trust me; it takes Emmett half an hour to type out a single sentence."

"Ro-ose," Emmett whined. "I can never remember where the damn keys are! They always seem to change places! I swear, the 'T' key used to be in the bottom right, but the last time I checked, it was in the upper left!"

"Uh, the 'T' key is in the top center," I informed him.

He slapped his forehead. "It changed spots _again_?"

"It's a good thing you're uber hot and strong," Rosalie patted his back sympathetically.

"Thanks babe," Emmett said, distracted. He pecked her on the lips affectionately.

Edward started quietly tiptoeing away from the scene. He hadn't made a peep since Emmett showed and I'd almost forgotten he was even there.

"Not so fast Edmund!"

Edward whipped back around.

"It's Edward, uh, sir," he said meekly.

"Don't _sir _me! If I say it's Edmund, it's Edmund," Emmett snapped.

"Calm down—" Rosalie started, but decided that there would be no point on going on.

"Okay, Edmund it is," Edward squeaked.

"First of all, I can't fucking believe that my sister's first kiss was with _you_. Second, I can't believe you did it in front of all those people. She should have had a more romantic—" Emmett ranted.

"That wasn't Bella's first. They've actually already kissed before," Rosalie spoke up. Her gaze told me that she wanted all the details later.

I gave her a withering glare. Not helpful, Rose.

"Oops," she mouthed, realizing her mistake. "Sorry."

Emmett turned a shade redder. "_That_ wasn't the first time?" he roared.

"C'mon Em," I reasoned lightly. "It's not like you're my dad."

"I may as well be because dad isn't doing his own fucking job."

My jaw tightened.

"Emmett," I tried to keep my cool. Bringing up dad in our arguments was like a cheap shot and it always struck a nerve. "I'm a big girl now. Please just get off my back about _these things_."

"Well _Isabella_," Emmett went into professor mode. "Obviously you aren't mature enough to hand 'those things' because you can't even say the word sex out loud without feeling embarrassed."

My fists clenched. What did _that_ have to do with anything?

Nonetheless, it wouldn't hurt to prove my own point…

"Sex! Sex! Sex! Sex…" I started chanting repeatedly.

Emmett looked dumbstruck. Satisfied, I continued.

"Uh, Bella…" Edward elbowed me, but I ignored him.

"Sex! Sex! Sex!" I continued exuberantly.

Suddenly, an overwhelming number of murmurs came from the group of journalists behind me.

Aw shit.

"Doggy or missionary style, Isabella?" one journalist shouted. "Who's on top? You or Edward??" another one asked.

I turned bright red and glared at Emmett who actually had the decency to look somewhat sheepish.

"Not look what you've done," I hissed.

He held his hands up in surrender.

* * *

Edward and I had finally gotten away from the press (and Emmett) to make it home. Maybe I was getting to big headed, because I half expected there to be a swarm of journalists around Edward's apartment. There weren't.

Emmett had finally laid off on the threats to Edward. Not because I told him to, but because some local newspaper journalist was hitting on Rosalie. Figures.

Edward had gone upstairs to sleep. Originally I'd gone with him, but I couldn't fall asleep so I came back down to watch some TV. It turns out that nothing good is on at eleven thirty at night except for the news and a few horrible comedies.

I yawned as I picked up the remote control to turn off the TV.

'Stay tuned for The Northwest News Moment of the day where we catch up with Isabella Swan and Edward Cullen,' the fair haired reporter said.

My ears perked up and my eyes flew open.

Was I hearing things? Or was— Sure enough, a snapshot of Edward and me showed up on the screen before cutting to commercials.

"Edward!" I yelled. No response. "Edward! Come down here!" I hollered a little louder.

A door slammed from upstairs and the creaking of someone running down a flight of steps sounded.

"What's wrong?" he demanded frantically as he rushed to the side of the couch.

I pointed towards the TV wordlessly.

He looked to where I'd directed and sighed impatiently.

"Yeah, Bella. It's called a 'Snuggie'," he said, annoyed as he watched the commercial. "The blanket with sleeves…"

"It just—moment of the day—they said!" I stuttered helplessly.

"I don't have time for this. The scene where Jessica Alba takes her shirt off is coming on."

"I thought you were sleeping," I accused.

"Well I couldn't since you left me in the bed alone," he whined adorably. I felt my heart beat stutter.

Fluttering my hands about, I patted the seat next to me. "Just wait!" I pleaded.

Reluctantly, he plopped beside me and rested his face in his hands.

"This better be good," he muttered.

The news show logo zipped onto the screen along with a catchy jingle. I sat on the edge of my seat, eyes glued to the television.

'We're back with the Northwest News Moment of the Day sponsored by Snuggie—the blanket with sleeves!" the newscaster reappeared with a wide smile on her face.

"Today's moment is of two local figure skaters," she continued.

Edward's jaw dropped as a scene of us striking our ending pose in our routine came on.

Shortly after, there was a close-up of our on ice kiss. It showed me flinging my arms around Edward and smashing our lips together.

I held my breath, counting the number of seconds we stayed like that.

One…

Two…

I started squirming in my seat. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Edward running his hands through his hair uneasily.

Three…

Four…

My eyes widened. Was it truly that long?

Five…

Six…

When the hell is this gonna end? Did they do some freaky editing to the video to make it longer?

Seven…

Edward tugged at the collar of his T-shirt awkwardly as we continued watching us making out.

Eight…

Finally, after what felt like years later, we pulled apart and I could finally breathe again.

The reporter giggled as the camera went back to her.

"How sweet was that? Truly makes you forget all about the world's problems when you see something as adorable as that," she smiled. "Whew, is it hot in here or it just me? There's definitely something steamy heating up between the two. Bella and Edward were unavailable for comment, but we'll be sure to follow this pair to the next competition!"

I slapped my forehead with my hands.

Just what I needed—more distractions.

"In the meantime, we did get a word with the pair's closest friends…" she trailed off for dramatic effect.

I was stricken. I didn't know Alice, Rosalie, Emmett, or Jasper had done an interview with NWCN (Northwest Cable News). Hmm, probably Rosalie had. She loves the spotlight and—

Victoria and James popped onto the screen.

I sucked in a breath.

No fucking way…

"We are just the _greatest_ friends with Izzy and Eddie!" Victoria squealed. "James-y and I train with them and it is a complete _blast_!"

Who the hell is 'Izzy'?

Edward barked a sharp laugh.

"Did you know about their blooming relationship?" the reporter pried.

"_Of course_! Izzy and I talk about _everything_. She and Eddie are just _sooo_ cute!" Victoria continued rambling.

"She and Eddie are just sooo cute," I mimicked her high pitched squeak under my breath. Edward chuckled.

The reporter turned her attention to James.

"So James," she continued. "We've heard all about how _your _partnership with Isabella ended a little while back. Tell me, are there any more hard feelings left there? Perhaps there's some behind the scene drama that we should know about?"

"Well—" James began.

"Oh!" Victoria cut him off. What a microphone hogger. "James-y and Izzy—hey that rhymes! — put that behind them _years_ ago! They've been great friends ever since—"

I grabbed the remote and turned off the TV. Enough was enough.

"The nerve of that bitch…It makes me want to strangle her!" I said crossly.

He leaned over and kissed my neck where it tickled, immediately releasing the tensed muscles.

"Mmm, now that wouldn't be good," he sighed as he moved lower and nuzzled my collar bone.

I lifted his chin with my finger to meet mine and pressed our lips together. At first it started out slow and gentle, but slowly each movement became more and more desperate.

Panting, I pulled away and he moved his attention back to my collar bone.

"Edward," I gasped for air.

He bit down on it gently and I let out an embarrassing 'mewing' sound that I didn't even know I was capable of.

"I should—I should retire to my room for the night," I said wistfully.

At this, he removed his lips and stared at me emptily.

"Hell, I don't think I'll be able to sleep without you," he stated flatly. "Don't you see what you're doing to me, woman?"

I shook my head wordlessly, flustered by the intensity behind his piercing emerald eyes.

He took my hand and placed it against his chest.

I scoffed. "I already know how fabulous your pecs are."

"No, I meant my heart!" he exclaimed, exasperated.

He pushed my hand harder into his chest until I felt the rapid beat coming from it.

"It's going really fast," I managed dumbly. "Is that healthy?"

"God knows you're not healthy for me," he mused.

He leaned forward to kiss me again, but pulled back abruptly as if a sudden thought had entered his head.

"Does yours go that fast when you're around me?" he asked seriously, gesturing to my heart.

He started reaching towards _my_ chest and involuntarily my pulse quickened. Quickly slapped his hand away.

"Ha! Nice try. You're just trying to feel my boobs," I accused.

He smiled crookedly and for a moment, I really wished he _would_ touch them.

The fast rhythm of my heart was the one thing I couldn't control or hide from him. I wasn't ready to let him know that he had the upper hand... that my fate depending on his actions.

At that moment, I truly realized how much I had on the line. Edward Cullen had complete power of my crystal ball. All I could do was hope that he wouldn't break it.

**End Chapter**

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Short.

Late.

I know—sorry.

Any ideas on what you want to see on here to spice things up? I'm starting to run short. PM or review with your ideas! C:

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	35. Table For Two

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Sorry for the delay. There's a little bit of everything in this chapter. **

* * *

_Chapter 35: Table for Two_

**BPOV:**

When I awoke, I found Edward's eyes already open and concentrating on me.

"Good morning," he whispered contently.

"How can you be so perky at this hour?" I complained.

I paused and realized that I could answer my own question. There were _millions_ of reasons to be so peppy at six AM. The main was that I was waking up next to Edward Cullen. The thrill still hadn't worn off. I wasn't sure it was ever going to.

We'd become codependent on each other and were nearly attached at the hip. Wherever he went, I went and wherever I went, he went. I couldn't sleep without him like a child couldn't sleep without her blanket.

I looked back at Edward who had the widest grin on his face.

"What has you so happy?" I asked.

"It's our one week anniversary!" he exclaimed in disbelief.

"Really Edward?" I laughed. "I didn't think you'd be big on the anniversary stuff."

He pulled away, looking somewhat hurt.

"I've never been with a girl that long," he explained seriously.

_Oh. _My mouth grew dry and my laughter ceased. It took me a second to comprehend how big of a deal this was to him. My expression grew tender as I rolled over to face him.

For Edward, staying a week in a romantic relationship was a milestone.

Deep in thought, I remained quiet.

"I think we should go out tonight after practice. To you know, celebrate," he offered hesitantly.

I kissed his cheek before I sat up.

"You mean like a date?"

"Yeah," he smiled crookedly.

"That sounds lovely," I said warmly, trying to make up for my dismissive attitude from earlier.

His eyes twinkled with excitement before he closed them with a happy sigh.

I reached down to brush his copper bangs out of his face. I took a closer look at him and noticed faint bags appearing under his eyes.

"Did you get any sleep last night?" I asked worriedly.

"Not much," he admitted, eyes still closed.

Irrationally, I began to panic. Just a few days ago he had implied that he could only sleep when I was next to him. Had that worn off?

"I was too busy thinking about us," he added. I exhaled in relief.

* * *

"I need to stop by the ladies room to change… Meet you in the car…"

"Alright," Edward replied, somewhat reluctantly. I felt his eyes boring circles into the back of my head as I retreated back into the arena.

Practice with Tatiana followed by ballet with Dominica had been grueling—both instructors showing no mercy that it was the end of a long and tiring week.

I could feel the sweat still sticking onto the back of my neck and wanted to clean up a bit before my first date with Edward.

After I scrubbed my face repeatedly with Alice's travel size face cleanser and changed into clean clothes, I exited the bathroom feeling refreshed.

Well, refreshed until James approached.

"Bella!" I heard him call.

Aw hell.

I walked a little faster, pretending that I hadn't heard him. Somehow, he caught up before I could exit and tapped my shoulder.

"James," I tried to greet him brightly without succeeding. The corners of his lips tugged up when he heard the edge of sourness beneath my tone.

"Well," I started. "I have to go now; Edward's waiting in the car."

Trying to escape, I attempted to push past him but he blocked the path.

"Excuse me, I'm trying to get by," I snapped.

He gave me a condescending smile but made no effort to move.

"Aww sweetie, don't be like that," he sneered.

I narrowed my eyes at the endearment. "Edward… He's waiting for me," I said faintly.

"I'm sure he can wait a few minutes while I borrow you," James answered in a sickening sweet voice.

I didn't buy it.

"What do you want?" I asked flatly.

"Oh, I didn't want anything," his eyes were downcast. "But now that you offered… Remember the magic that we used to make together out there?" he gestured towards the arena.

I stared at him disbelievingly. "You mean the magic of making me want to puke? Yeah. I remember."

He inched closer as I took an uncomfortable step back.

"You don't need to act like you don't like me. If you just admit it now, we could save ourselves a lot of drama," his breath fanned my face.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I spat.

"I see the way you watch me day in and day out. You obviously want me back. You've wanted me back since day one when we ended it."

I scoffed. "Oh please. That is that last thing that—"

"Stop making this difficult when it doesn't have to be," he interrupted.

"It's not being difficult when it's the truth," I glowered. "You know what? I'm glad you and Victoria found each other."

"Don't be like that, baby. There's no reason to pretend."

Delusional asshole.

"I'm going to say this one last time," I took a deep breath. "I do not want anything to do with you in any way. Leave. Me. Alone."

The first spark of anger flashed in his eyes.

"You think that you and Edward have a better chance than Vicky and me," he accused. Suddenly, his demeanor calmed. "I think you should drop Edward like a bad habit. You and I could rock the skating world."

"You skate with Victoria," I reminded him.

He waved his hand frivolously. "I'll never get anywhere with her the way you'll never get anywhere with Edward. Plus, Vicky's lazy as a cow."

That was insulting to cows around the world.

"You made if very clear that you wanted Victoria when you went to make out with her behind my back," I hissed.

He cocked an eyebrow up. "So you _do_ want to get back together."

"I never said that."

"But you implied it."

"Stop twisting my words."

"Think about how much we could achieve together."

"That would be none."

"Drop the shit and fucking partner up with me."

I paused to take a breath.

"You had your chance two years ago and let it go. Listen buddy, the window of opportunity has _closed. _As a matter of fact it has been sealed with super glue and bolted shut," I gritted my teeth.

"You'll come around," he responded smugly.

"Ha-ha, even if you were the last man on the earth I wouldn't. Stop living in the past."

Catching him by surprise, I breezed past him and into the parking lot.

Freedom at last.

I made my way towards Edward's familiar Volvo and opened the door with a huff.

"What took you so long?" Edward asked.

"Complications," I muttered bitterly.

"Oh," he pondered what I'd meant by that and made a face.

"Not _that_ kind of complication, just… I dunno, irritating," I corrected myself.

He nodded and thankfully didn't pry. "Whatever it was, it took a while. I thought that you might have ditched me."

I chuckled at his silliness but when he didn't join in; I realized that he had been dead serious.

"I wouldn't miss this for the world. You know that," I murmured reassuringly.

Until now, I hadn't noticed that Edward harbored just as many insecurities and fears and I did. I'd always thought that he was unbreakable, but behind the surface there was vulnerability.

"You couldn't possibly think…" I started but stopped when his eyes remained downcast and embarrassed. I sighed. "Edward, I've looked forward to this all day."

His manner brightened a bit.

"I used to go here for dinner almost every night," Edward commented as he pulled into a parking space. "The people here _love_ me."

I nodded apprehensively as we approached the restaurant.

The doorman gave Edward a slight nod before opening the door for us.

The waiter stood behind a wooden podium that had the restaurant's crest on it.

"Good evening Mr. Cullen," he greeted formally. "Long time no see."

Edward bowed his head. "Table for two."

"Right this way…" the host gestured.

We passed through the doors and into the exquisite dining area. It practically blinded me with its luxury. A crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling and the lights were dimmed to achieve a more romantic atmosphere. There was a pianist in the corner running his fingers along the keys. Couples dressed in black and white attire roamed the room, making me feel insufficient in my nicest pair of jeans and simple jacket.

"Why didn't you tell me that this was formal?" I hissed.

"Because you look great in anything," Edward winked.

I blushed at the statement. He was such a charmer… And I was naïve enough to fall for it.

I took a look at Edward to see him in simple black jeans and a hoodie. At least he was dressed casually as well.

The waiter escorted us to a table in the center right below the chandelier. The thing hung above our heads ominously, making me nervous that the chain holding it up would snap and crush us to our deaths.

"Uhh…" I squinted at the waiter's name tag. "Crowley. Could we perhaps have a table more near the, er, wall?"

Edward's eyebrow quirked up questionably.

Crowley didn't bat a single eyelash. "Of course _you_ can Ms…"

"Swan," I informed.

He nodded. "Ahh, of course. The most beautiful."

Edward pursed his lips as I giggled.

Crowley led us to my chosen table. Flipping out the menus expertly he gave me one last wink before disappearing through the double doors.

Edward exhaled at me in annoyance.

"What?" I asked as he gave me a pointed look.

He shook his head and mumbled something unintelligible.

Behind Edward, my gaze caught on a girl who was staring at Edward open mouthed. It was almost as if when she turned around she was surprised to see him there.

_"Bella?"_

I groaned internally when her eyes lit up and narrowed in on him.

"_Bella?"_

She stood up slowly, revealing the little black dress she was wearing that must have been painted, if not taped on.

I followed her movement as she licked her lips and slowly strutted towards Edward confidently. Edward had his back turned to her so he had no idea that the snake was coming behind him.

"Bella!" Edward's voice snapped my out of my thoughts. "What the hell are you looking—?"

He scooted his chair out of the table and turned around just in time to smack into blondie's inflated chest.

"Mmph," Edward whimpered at his sudden lack of oxygen. Go figure.

He looked up at whoever he had 'bumped into' and I saw his eyes widen with recognition. Obviously the two had already been acquainted.

"Edward, you haven't been around in for-ev-er," she purred.

I pouted mutely, wishing I could talk like that without making a fool out of myself.

"Lauren…" he chuckled nervously.

Aw shit. He actually remembered this ones name. That wasn't a good sign. I held my breath as she stroked his shoulder.

"Why don't you come join me at _my_ table?" Lauren offered.

I coughed under my breath to get her attention.

Her eyes flickered over towards me briefly. "Oh. Well I guess we could fit one more chair in… Or you could sit at the table _next_ to us!"

Edward cleared his throat. "Sorry, but I came with Bella."

She sniffed and turned her nose up snottily. "Hmph. Well if you change your mind, I'm just a call away… You still have my number right?"

Wrong. I made Edward clean up his contacts list the other day of past fucks.

Batting her eyelashes one last time, Lauren swept back to her own table and I could finally relax.

It was quiet for the next moment. Damn Lauren for interrupting right when our conversation had started flowing.

"Listen, I'm sorry it's just that—"

"When you said that the people here _loved_ you I didn't think that you meant it so literally," I bit my lip.

Edward looked at me funny, and then spread into a wide grin.

"This isn't funny," I sulked.

He laughed. "_Isabella_," he chided. I glared at him for using my formal name. "There's not reason to be _jealous_."

I stomped my foot down indignantly. "I am _not_ jealous!"

"Yes you are," he sang happily. "You like me, you like me, you like _me_! Bella likes Edward!"

More than she should.

"Correction," I seethed. "I _liked_ you," I said, emphasizing the past tense of 'liked'.

He quieted at that statement. "Aw c'mon Bella."

There was a thoughtful silence.

"I thought you already knew I liked you," I mused.

He shied away insecurely. "Well…"

I thought about it and realized that I'd never admitted to Edward that I 'liked' him in so many words. My belief is that actions speak louder.

"Edward, I _do _like you," I said, pausing for a second. "A lot."

"A lot?" his eyes widened. I nodded in confirmation.

I looked around me to find that we were both leaning towards each other like a magnet was pulling us together.

"If anyone's going to go through Tatiana's hell with me, I'm glad it's going to be you," I admitted sincerely.

My butt was on the edge of my seat, waiting for him to say something in return. Silently, I begged him to say something heartfelt back. I rarely put myself out there like that, and having to depend on the other person to hold up my heart wasn't something that I was accustomed to.

"Thanks."

That was the one word he uttered. _Thanks_.

What a let down.

Suddenly bitter, I plunked back down into my chair.

I couldn't believe that the one time I opened up and revealed my true feelings, all he said was—

"I think I'm in love with you," Edward blurted.

Sweet Lord. I got more than I bargained for with this boy.

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

It felt right. C:

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	36. April Fools

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**I wanted to thank one of my anonymous reviewers, Anna, for the clarification.**

* * *

_Chapter 36: April Fools_

**EPOV:**

_"I think I'm in love with you."_

Holy shit. My mouth officially had a mind of its own.

Bella sat back in her chair, stunned.

"I don't know… I don't know what t-to say," she struggled to respond.

I mentally slapped my forehead. Well _that_ was a complete bust.

"April fools!" I blurted suddenly.

Mentally slaps forehead again.

"Oh… U-um. Okay…" Bella stammered.

Was it just me or did she seem somewhat disappointed? Deciding to give it the benefit of the doubt, I continued blurting random phrases that came to mind.

"Ha-ha! April fools again!" I laughed nervously. "I fooled you into thinking that I was in love with you. And then I fooled you again to say that the fool before was actually the real fool!"

That didn't even make any sense to _me_ and I'm the one speaking.

"Huh? I'm… confused," Bella said.

I took a deep breath and looked her straight in the eye. "I'm in love with you, Bella."

Her mouth was dropped open in a perfect 'O' shape.

"Idon'tgetit." Her words came out rushed, but I still managed to decipher them.

"I'm in love with you," I enunciated each word. "I love you," I added more quietly.

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat and took a sip of her water. That wasn't a good sign. It meant that she was stalling. Aw hell, this outlook isn't looking all that good.

"Edward," she murmured my name softly, causing my heart to soar.

She closed her eyes for a moment before reopening them. Her facial features were now completely recomposed.

On the exterior I patiently waited for her to speak.

However, on the inside, I was screaming for her to hurry the hell up and explain herself. Did she return my feelings? Did she have _any_ feelings whatsoever? A million questions and memories ran through my mind.

"Edward," she said again, this time a little longer. I felt my leg shaking under the table. I already knew my fucking name! I _wanted_ to know what Bella was thinking!

"That's my name sweetie, don't wear it out," I forced a humorous grin onto my face.

She blushed and looked down at her lap.

"You are amazingly sweet, charming…" she finally started. I nodded slowly. "But-"

The hope that had built up in me crumbled. Quickly, I braced myself for the 'but'.

-"But I think we should take it slow," she continued. I exhaled in defeat. "We've only known each other for a few months and I don't think either of us is ready…"

Hell no, I was fucking ready.

"I'm ready," I said firmly. I was the one feeling the passion, not her. I knew what it was and what was going on inside me better than she did.

She sighed and nodded. There was a little bit of triumph in knowing that I was wearing her down.

"Alright, so maybe you are ready," she agreed. "But-"

Aw hell, another 'but'.

-"I'm not ready."

I bobbed my head up in down reassuringly. She wasn't ready. I understood that. But I would wait. She couldn't stop me from waiting.

"The thing is," she began calmly. My ears perked up. "I'm not sure if what you're feeling is well, er, _love_."

What the fuck?

"And why the hell do you think that?" I asked a little too harshly. She had no right to tell me how I felt.

"Are you sure…Are you sure that what you think is 'love' isn't just the fact that I'm one of the few stable people in your life?" she asked in a small voice.

I recoiled away from her narrow mindedness.

"Think about it," she added slightly more confidently this time. "Besides your mother and father, have you _ever_ had someone solid by your side?"

I thought about it and did a double take.

There was Esme.

Carlisle.

And…

"No," I whispered in realization. "No. I haven't."

My thoughts had completely turned on me. Damn Bella for making me question emotions. It almost made me feel like I couldn't trust myself.

Was Bella right? Could I have possibly confused my passion with my need for her?

There was no denying it. I _needed_ her like a druggie needed to snort his cocaine.

Reaching across the table, she took my hands in hers—only meaning for it to be a friendly gesture. Nonetheless, this little skin to skin contact was all it took to just _know_. The sensations weren't the doing of my want to latch onto someone. I was in love with her. No doubt.

"Time. We should give it some time and see how it plays out," Bella suggested.

I nodded, but everything she'd just said had went through one ear and gone out the other.

There wasn't a single doubt in my mind now.

I didn't need any time. I knew that I could tell her right this second that I loved her with so much conviction that it could convince America that the economy would magically get better tomorrow.

"Edward!"

A feminine voice shouted from across the room. My head snapped back and I became conscious of reality. I chuckled quietly to myself as I looked around and remembered I was in a restaurant.

"Edward!" the girl's voice repeated.

I turned my head slowly towards the door and saw a light haired brunette girl making her way through the door. I couldn't help but notice that her hair (although it was also brown) wasn't half as beautiful as Bella's. Bella's was shiny and luscious while 'What's Her Face' had split ends that had probably been under the heating iron one too many times.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Bella pursing her lips in dissatisfaction.

She had nothing to worry about. My heart belonged to her.

The fair haired brunette continued making her way towards us and with every millimeter, the crease in Bella's brow deepened.

"Hey…er…" I raised my eyebrows for her name.

"Jessica Stanley," her plastic smile faltered a bit.

Oh. _Oh. _One of the backseat fucks before Bella.

Fuck.

Jessica's gaze flickered towards Bella and a snobbish smirk formed on her face.

"Oh! What a surprise. Hello there Bella," Jessica sneered.

My eyebrows practically shot up to the ceiling.

These two knew each other, and judging from the disdainful look on both girls' faces, there was nothing but hate radiating between them.

Oh shit. Hopefully this wouldn't work against me…

"Jessica," Bella avoided her gaze.

"Well," Jessica turned her nose up as she glanced back and forth between us. "I see that some people never change."

My interest escalated. What could Jessica be talking about? I was extremely curious in Bella's life before me and she rarely broached the topic.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Bella gritted her teeth.

"You may not know this," Jessica turned her attention to me. "But Bella tends to whore around for the sake of her bank account. You know, the Benjamins."

Right away, I knew that she was referring to Benjamin Franklin on the hundred dollar bill.

"You started that rumor," Bella growled.

"It's not a rumor when it's the truth," Jessica tilted her head to the side.

I decided to keep my thoughts to myself since I didn't know the basic facts behind what they were bickering about. Plus, I'd learned that sometimes whatever I say can be taken the wrong way. I sure as hell don't want to get on Bella's bad side. As for Jessica's, I couldn't care less.

Jessica Stanley may have a pretty face, but _nothing_—I repeat: n-o-t-h-i-n-g—was beautiful about her on the inside. I analyzed her face for a moment longer and started to notice that her face was a perfect oval, kind of like a circle that had its two sides gently compressed with a Thigh Master.

I sniggered to myself silently at the thought.

Bella, being the perceptive girl she was automatically noticed the change in my demeanor.

Jessica didn't.

As if it were an inside joke, Bella gave me an amused glance and winked before returning to glaring at Jessica.

"Word of the wise, make sure you don't leave your wallet lying around," Jessica advised me.

Bella tensed up in her seat and I saw tiny water droplets forming in the corner of her eyes.

Aw shit. If there was one thing I couldn't handle, it was watching Bella cry. She was so tough that it almost seemed surreal and unnatural when she did.

Trying not to appear to be staring, I stole another glance at her and saw her bottom lip trembling.

I was screwed. Her pain was my pain.

"See you around." Jessica leaned down and planting a big juicy one on my cheek before flouncing off to her table. Bitch.

I could have sworn that the tears in Bella's eyes went ice cold and froze up when her enemy's lips met my cheek.

Was it so bad to say that I got a rise out of her jealousy? Everyone knows that jealousy was the darker form of affection.

Bella promptly stood up and marched out the door as soon as Jessica left. Whatever electric spark that was buzzing between us early had diminished to a burnt out battery thanks to her.

Quickly, I left a bill and a very generous tip on the table before running out.

As cliché as it was, it was pouring rain outside. Bella stood by my Volvo repeatedly trying to open the doors hopelessly.

There were water marks running down her cheeks, and not from the rain. Her hair was drenched, making her look like a drowning cat. Even so, she was still beautiful. A painful current ran through my body when I absorbed the condition she was in.

I unlocked the car door and in one swift movement she was already inside.

"I can't believe I'm crying over her," Bella hiccupped. Tentatively, I placed a comforting arm around her shoulder.

"Shh… Shh…" I murmured.

"All she said—it isn't true," she continued angrily. The salty tears continued pouring out and were probably ruining my leather seats, but I didn't give a damn.

I'd learned that cars could easily be bought. Bella was priceless.

"I know."

"She made high school hell for me," she seethed. I assumed that she was referring to Jessica. "I always minding my own damn business and never laid even a single bothersome finger on her!"

Her sobs grew harsher and louder. I could tell that we were getting to bitterest memories of her high school years.

I wanted to soothe her bawling, but first she had to get out all the bad toxins in her body. Sometimes all you needed was a good cry.

"And then one day she caught her boyfriend, Mike—is it just me or are all Mikes douche bags?—flirting with me," she sucked in a breath. "And I tried to explain that I had no intentions to steal Mike from her and that he was the one who had brought it on, but she wouldn't listen."

I squeezed her shoulder harder to show that I was listening.

"The n-next day there were flyers floating all around school," Bella wiped her tears with her sleeve. "I didn't bother to read one since I don't really pay attention to those things. I noticed that people were pointing and whispering more than normal, but didn't think anything of it."

There was a raw pause.

"It wasn't til lunch period that day that one girl came up to me to tell me what the flyers were all about. Jessica had photo-shopped me onto a slutty body."

I briefly considered going back into the damn restaurant and beating the shit out of Jessica.

"I thought that the flyers would die down with some time, but it seemed like every where I turned someone was waving one in my face."

I pulled her tighter against me, wishing I could have been there for her. Instead, I was probably back in Chicago fucking around with a real whore. What a waste of time.

"That was sophomore year," Bella recalled. "I did online school when I was a junior and a senior."

"I'm sorry that happened to you," I said as I caressed her cheek lovingly.

I was trying to show her how much I loved her with the little things.

A single tear rolled down her cheek and I reached to brush it away with my finger tips.

From now on I would be there for her when she needed me.

"I love you." I nuzzled my face into her hair, oblivious to the fact that it was still wet.

She didn't say anything back.

But didn't try to contradict it either.

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

I promise that Jessica wasn't just another roadblock for Bella/Edward. I feel like they really grew together as a couple in this chapter and that such drama was necessary for character development.

**Lastly, many of you are annoyed with 'player-Edward' (especially if you just started the first few chapters). This story is not for everyone and if you enjoy 'perfect-Edward' this story may not be for you. **

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	37. Love Quiz

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Missed y'all. My sincerest apologies for being so unresponsive. Thank you for not giving up on me. **

**Sorry for the humongous delay.**

* * *

_Chapter 37: Love Quiz_

**BPOV:**

Another week had passed since Edward admitted that he was in love with me. That was another week since he held me tight against his chest while my eyes spewed out tears from my Jessica Stanley induced emotional breakdown.

He never said those three little words to my face again since then.

Sometimes I heard him murmur quiet 'I love yous' when he thought I was already asleep or not listening—but I heard them as loud and clear as I would have if he screamed it to me.

He was constantly running through my mind so often that I couldn't help but start to believe that I _was_ in love with him.

I still wasn't positive though and Lord knows that I don't take action unless I'm one hundred percent sure about something.

…Which is probably why I am now sitting in front of my computer screen, googling the words: 'love quiz'.

The results were staggering. Those two little words generated practically fourteen million results in merely a quarter of a second. Amazing.

Not sure which one was the best, I decided to the first link that seemed promising. After all, Google had ranked the pages in a certain order and clearly this quiz was the 'number one' choice.

The title of the link was: _Quiz: Is it Love_? Yup, that's exactly what I want to know…Exactly what I _need_ to know.

**LOVE QUIZ:**

_Q: Is your relationship give and take; sometimes you make accommodations and sometimes your love does? _

I was about to check 'Yes' when I paused to think about it. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that Edward was making all the accommodations and I was barely making any. He gave up a lot of girls, deleted his past one night stands' numbers, let me sleep in his bed… Holy shit, he did _all _the accommodating. Discouraged, I answered '_sometimes_'.

_Q: Do you know how he feels about children?_

Uhh, no… Should I? I clicked the choice '_no_' and moved onto the next question.

_Q: Does your love interest make you feel good about yourself, who you are inside, and what the things you do? _

Hmm… Well, Edward made me feel insanely good about myself… But sometimes I felt inferior to his speed and power in the rink. I decided on the choice '_sometimes_'.

_Q: Does your love interest make an effort to get along with your friends even when you know s/he doesn't like them?_

_Yes. _I didn't even need to stop to ponder about this one. Edward's effort to please Emmett was more than enough.

_Q: Has your love interest ever given you an ultimatum in order to get you to do something you did not want to do, something that would harm you, another person, or is just plain mean?_

Edward would never do anything to intentionally harm me, I was sure of it. I thought back to the time when he kidnapped me from the ice rink and persuaded me to stay at his place. It was probably the best thing that happened to me, but he did give me an ultimatum in order to get me do something that I hadn't wanted to do. With a sigh, I clicked '_yes_'.

_Q: Has your love interest ever pressured you to have sex?_

No. _Never._

_Q: Has your love interest ever pressured you to try drugs and/or alcohol?_

I rewound back to my first sip of tequila. Edward had made me choose between seducing a guy and taking a shot at the bar. I guess that could be considered 'light' pressuring—it was still pressuring though light or not. I chose '_yes_'.

I waited a moment as the computer calculated my results. Nervous, I started nibbling on my lower lip.

_Your score is 45 out of 100. Lust and love are easy to confuse. The biggest difference, love is kind, lust is intoxicating. Based on your answers it seems like you are more in lust than in love. Many of your answers were one sided, meaning you and your partner rarely compromise or work together to find a solution that fits both your needs. _

My heart dropped.

_45??!_

Sure, Edward and I weren't perfect, but seriously, _45 out of 100_? Not even 50%?

I heard footsteps from behind and frantically minimized the window.

"Hey Bell," Edward approached and placed a masculine hand on my shoulder. Electric shocks radiated through it, all the way down to my toes. "Whatcha doing?"

He stared curiously at the blank computer screen. Quickly, I turned around to block his view from the minimized quiz results.

"Just some… stuff," I replied lamely.

"Oh." He ran his hands through his hair. "Well, you should start changing now… Don't want to be late—Tatiana would blow a fuse."

Still in daze of the quiz results, I hesitated to respond.

He gave me a funny look. "Hello? Bella? You know… Changing for practice?"

I blinked and shook my head. "Oh. Practice. Right… Okay," I said faintly.

He smiled crookedly and nodded. "Meet you downstairs in a few. I'm going to go ahead and load our skates in the car."

It would be a lot more convenient if we could keep our skates in the car 24/7, but if we didn't take them into the house to air out they would get moldy and gross.

"Kay. Thanks," I whispered.

As he left the room, I reopened the quiz to reread the results—not that I had expected them to change over the course of a few minutes. They had to be wrong… Right?

"Bella?"

I practically fell off the chair—startled with Edward's returning voice. Reflexively, I closed the screen again and turned to face him.

"Are you—You seem kinda…" his head poked through the door and the concern was evident on his face.

"Kinda…" he continued, struggling for a word. "Never mind. I'll be outside."

I smiled. "Okay."

That was close. I'm a terrible liar and probably would have given everything away if Edward had continued what he was about to say.

Hurriedly, I saved the page into my 'Favorites' folder and sped out of the room to change.

* * *

_"Are you alright?" _

These were the first words Edward asked me as I jumped into the car.

He started the engine and the Volvo began to purr softly.

"Me? Alright? Of course!" I babbled.

He gave me a questioning, but not at all suspicious look.

Taking a deep breath, I tried to look a little less frazzled speak without speed-talking. "Why would you think otherwise?"

"It's just that, you've been kind of out of it all day."

I raised my eyebrows and let out a nervous giggle.

"Oh! Really? How so?"

I could feel my cheeks flushed with heat.

Edward shrugged. "I dunno. You're just kinda jumpy…"

Boy, did I know it.

His eyes narrowed. I gulped. Could he have possibly found out about—

"Did you cheat the pact and drink coke? We promised each other that we would stay on it!" Edward accused. "You know that Tatiana has restricted us to water, milk, and diluted fruit juice."

I exhaled in relief. "Me? Drink coke? Of course not! I haven't drunk anything but water all day!"

He raised his eyebrows in amusement. "Alright, I believe you. You just seem kind of keyed up." He pulled into a parking space at Forks Arena and took out the car keys. No pun intended.

"Isabella! Edward!"

My head whipped around to find Tatiana just getting out of her car. Oh brother, if anyone could notice my condition, it would be Tatiana. She knew me like an open book.

"How my two love bird doing?" she chirped as she waltzed over. I'd never seen her in such a pleasant mood before…

"Uhh, I thought you were against Edward and my relationship," I hedged, remember the anger in her expression when we got off the ice after kissing at a competition.

"Me? No likey you and Edward in love?" she faked innocence. "Oh, no, no, no, no!"

Edward tilted his head to the side, obviously also picking up the suspicion behind this predicament.

"What's going on?" Edward asked.

"I just think you two together so romantic!" Tatiana defended.

Well, she didn't think that last week. However, Tatiana was very changeable.

My heart fluttered at her approval though. Maybe Tatiana's support of Edward and my romantic relationship was a sign that we were meant to work out. Maybe…

"Yesterday you were yelling at us to stop making goo-goo eyes at each other," Edward added.

True. She had chased us off the ice and squawked about how we were at the rink to work—not do some 'mating dance' (as she had so graciously called it).

Tatiana waved her hand dismissively. "Well that I did yesterday and I do lots thinking and change my mind. I think now…"

"Think what?"

"I think now when you guys lovey-dovey you skating get a lot better!" she finished.

I put my hand on my chin to think about it and the more I did, the more I realized that she was right. I hadn't fallen on a single throw jump this week and Edward and I had been synchronized on every side by side spin. Ever since the kiss our skating had been flawless. My cheeks began heating up at the prospect. To my right, I heard Edward snap his fingers in sudden realization as well.

He turned and smiled cheekily at me as if he were trying to prove a point.

"You love me," he mouthed merrily.

_I think I do… Right? _No! But my quiz score was 45 and it said that I was just feeling lust.

My heart pounded as I shook my head furiously in denial.

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! That would have been the perfect opportunity to just _say it. _I internally scolded myself for being such a wimp.

"The quiz!" I blurted.

"What quiz?" Edward and Tatiana asked, confused.

I knew I'd been flirting with Edward shamelessly all week and it was clear that he was frustrated with the fact that I kept saying I didn't love him versus the signals that told him otherwise.

I sighed. "Well, I took this quiz and…"

Everything poured out then. Once I got going, every tiny detail that had gone through my mind seemed to come out along with it.

I watched Edward's expression carefully as I explained my lingering doubts and fears. The more I spoke, the more I realized how silly I was sounding. Somewhere along the way, Tatiana had silently slipped out of view to give us some privacy.

Finally, I let out a much needed breath, gauging his reaction.

"Bella…" my name slipped off his tongue slowly.

A smile broke out on his face. "You are the most absurd person I've ever met. You actually believe those things?"

"Well, am I supposed to know whether it's love or lust without the quiz?" I demanded, a little offended.

Edward shook his head and chuckled softly. "You just know."

I scoffed. "Ha! I tend to be a tad slow with these things, so don't be so sure about that."

"Trust me." His eyes twinkled. "You'll know."

Could he be anymore cryptic?

"I don't need some stupid little quiz on the internet to prove my love for you," he said seriously.

"And you're saying that I do?" I asked hotly.

Ignoring my comment, he continued. "I don't need some quiz to know I'm in love with you. I already know… Right _here_."

Taking my hand, he placed it over his heart.

"D-don't be such a sap," I stammered.

"You're a sucker for it," he winked.

I blushed beet red. Gah, I hated him for always being right.

"Face it, Bella."

"What?"

"You don't _like_ me."

I turned my nose up to hide my scarlet cheeks. "You're right. I don't."

"You don't just like me," he repeated. "You _love_ me."

I did a double take. "W-what? B-but the quiz said… It doesn't make sense…"

"Forget the damn quiz. _Love_ doesn't have to make sense. You know what? You have to stop looking at things so analytically. Just… Go with it, you know?"

I crossed my arms over my chest. "No. I _don't_ know."

"Yes you do," Edward insisted. "Don't you ever get tired of overanalyzing things?"

"I don't overanalyze!" I argued.

"If you say so…" Edward shrugged.

There was a brief silence.

"Okay," I surrendered. "Maybe a little."

"It's okay to overanalyze," Edward added in quickly.

I scowled. "Judging from how this conversation has been going, it doesn't seem like you think it's one of my stronger qualities."

"I tend to find it endearing," he confessed.

"Liar."

"No, really!"

"Stop it!"

"Stop what?" Edward inquired.

"Making me love you," I whispered softly.

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

That was probably some of my cheesiest work. Hopefully it wasn't too predictable. C:

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	38. New Sensation

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Yup. This indeed is an update. For those who PMed me asking how I was doing, thanks for the concern. This story WILL be finished, but I can't give you an exact timeline. Enjoy. **

**OK. So I know for a fact that some of my readers are uncomfortable with a certain degree of sexual content. I guess up until here it's been fairly mild, and could be rated T, but this chapter is one of the reasons why I rated this story M. Thanks. **

* * *

_Chapter 38: New Sensation_

**BPOV:**

"Stop it!"

"Stop what?"

"Making me love you," I whispered.

He sucked in a sharp breath.

"What?" Edward asked dumbly.

I nodded sincerely and took a step towards him. Our noses were practically touching but I wanted to feel more. Sensing this, he wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed my forehead in the middle of the parking lot. A passing car across the street honked and a bunch of cat calls emitted from inside. What a mood killer.

"Aren't you going to say anything back?" I asked suddenly.

An amused expression flitted across his features. That wasn't a good sign.

"I knew it," he grinned lazily. I raised an eyebrow in clarification. "I knew you loved me all along. I wouldn't be surprised if it were since day _one_."

I pushed him away in mock hurt. "Can't you do anything in a non-cocky manner?"

"You love it."

Damn it.

I leaned towards me and tilted my head up so that I could look into his eyes. They were forever piercing green. Slowly, he leaned down and pressed our lips together.

"Mmm…" I sighed, going on my tiptoes to get a better angle.

Without any warning, Tatiana had squirmed her body between us with her nose scrunched up unpleasantly—almost as if she'd magically appeared. For an old lady she sure was quick on her feet.

"I do not tolerate display like this in parking lot," she reminded us sternly.

I made a face and broke apart from Edward.

"Fuck you bitch," he muttered, echoing my exact thoughts.

I swallowed back a giggle.

"What you just say?" Tatiana held a hand up to her ear.

"Nothing."

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a sly smile inching onto Edward's face. Quickly, he stole a wink at me as soon as Tatiana's back was to me.

It was enough for the laughter bubbling to explode. I started giggling uncontrollably—unable to contain myself.

Tatiana gave Edward a suspicious look, wondering if he were the one that had triggered my laugh attack.

Instead of owning up, he just shrugged inconspicuously and muttered something about me being crazy.

What a traitor.

He winked again; this time imitating Tatiana's scrunched up nose and narrowed eyes.

Another set of giggles overtook me once again.

Tatiana, seemingly giving up on us gave Edward a final dirty look before shuffling to the coaches' room.

"I swear these children give me white hairs before I turn forty," she mumbled, emphasizing her age.

I snorted as Edward shook his head. Tatiana was definitely way past her forties. Perhaps in her upper fifties or lower sixties; I wasn't exactly sure of her exact age.

However, I couldn't argue with her about being the cause of her hair turning gray. It was all Edward's fault.

"She meant you," Edward spoke suddenly as if reading my mind.

"How did you know that I was thinking…"

"Your face." His eyes conveyed something in the lines of '_duh'_.

"Well," I sniffed, unable to come back with a smart response.

Edward smirked, knowing he'd won this battle. Hmph. Well you know what they say, lose a _battle_, win the _war_.

I tilted my head up to meet his eyes.

At that moment I just _knew_. I knew it was right. I didn't want to wait anymore.

Tatiana emerged from the coaches' room and started heading towards us.

I coughed. "Tatiana," my voice intentionally raspy.

Edward studied my face worriedly.

Tatiana gave me an apprehensive 'hmm?'

"I'm not feeling really good," I stood up and wobbled on my feet, trying to appear dizzy and disoriented.

I fell back, onto Edward's lap as he lifted the back of his hand to my forehead checking to see if I had a temperature. His naivety was endearing.

"Well, you fine earlier," she said plainly. Her expression changed. "you going to puke on new Burberry scarf I wearing?"

"I don't f-feel so good," I groaned.

Her brow creased into a gentle 'V' shape, taking my response as a 'Yup, I could puke on your damn scarf any minute now'.

I scooted myself off Edward's lap and lay my head on it.

"Are you alright?"

"I just want to lie down," I said faintly. That wasn't a complete fib, Edward's lap did feel _really _nice and warm.

Tatiana's frowned. "You go home and rest. I wants you better next day."

I closed my eyes so she couldn't read them and nodded in gratefulness. Tugging at Edward's sleeve I staggered until standing while clinging onto him.

My fingers ran across the muscles that were built up in his arms. Mmm… I could jump his bones right now and not give a shit. _No!_ I scolded myself for even thinking about giving into the temptation. I didn't want my first time to be observed by Tatiana.

"Mr. Cullen." Edward turned towards Tatiana. "You feeling fine. I want you stay for practice."

I looked at Edward's eyes pleadingly. I _needed _him. Not in the way he thought though.

"Erm, with all due respect, I think I should make sure Bella gets home safely and tucked into bed."

I nodded weakly.

Tatiana huffed but eventually gave in. "I be very kind and give you today off. You be better and be back tomorrow."

"Kay," I said frailly, leaning up against Edward's shoulders for support.

Edward helped me into the car. I let him carry me since I knew Tatiana was watching my little façade from the window.

Just for the sake of testing my acting skills, I acted ill the ride home and as Edward carried me up the stairs and lay me down on the bed. It was too warm to pull over the covers.

As soon as he set me down, I broke out into a big grin and began giggling with no end in sight.

"Bella? Are you… Okay?" Edward asked, clearly puzzled and a pinch worried. He probably thought I was going insane.

"I figured it out!" I laughed hysterically.

Edward's expression remained worried and said something in the lines of 'I think she's finally losing it'.

He couldn't have been very far off with that prediction though. Maybe I _was_ losing it.

"I can't believe it!"

"What?"

Before he could react, I lifted my shirt off my head. I don't think I'd ever moved so fast in my life.

"W-what are you doing?"

I began unhooking the back of my bra, but this time Edward was too quick for me. His hands grabbed mine just before I could get the hook off.

"Bella." His eyes held a dazed expression as he stared at my chest. In return, I looked up at him innocently.

"I want it to be you," I murmured and began reaching for my bra again. I wanted him to be the first.

Realization dawned in his eyes.

"Shit," he muttered.

I smiled coyly.

"Seriously, I want to do this, just not today. I mean, you're not feeling well and you're probably not thinking straight," he stammered.

"I'm fine. It was all staged," I laughed.

"What?"

"I acted out the whole thing!" I announced proudly.

He remained baffled.

"I'm not sick or anything. I just wanted to come back here with you," I explained more softly. "I couldn't wait."

"But—"

"Please. I'm ready."

His uncertainty didn't waiver.

"C'mon Edward. Feel my forehead, it's normal. I don't have a damn cough. I'm not feeling a damn bit like I'm going to throw or pass out. I'm utterly, completely fine."

"Are you sure?" his eyes tightened.

"Yes."

"It'll hurt the first time."

"I know. I love you though."

He sighed. "I love you too."

There was no other way around it. We were two beings in love with each other, there was nothing holding us back.

"You're on a pill?"

I could tell the wheels were turning in his mind to find another excuse for it to not be today. There was no use, I was ready.

"Yeah."

He shut his eyes tightly and let out a breath. When he opened them, there was a new light in them. Hunger.

His long and nimble fingers reached and unhooked my bra for me, letting it fall to my waist. A sudden shyness swept over me as he took me in, and I wondered why I hadn't thought this through my carefully.

I tried turning away from him, but he held me in place.

"I'm not that—" I began protesting.

"Stop," he interrupted. "You're perfect."

A peaceful smile danced on his lips.

I leaned forward and reached for the buttons his shirt. Somehow, the adrenaline running through me must have helped me get them all undone in no time. Maybe it was the anxiety.

I ran my palm along the plains of his chest, stopping momentarily at where I felt his heart beating and smiled. Everything about him seemed perfectly sculpted by an experienced artist.

He pushed me back onto the bed and began nibbling my ear before kissing down my throat to the band of my skirt. On his way down, he stopped at my breast, swirling his tongue around my hardened nipples. I arched into his touch.

"Mmm…"

He then turned his attention to my other breast, giving it the same amount of attention as the first. Edward was always fair.

A moment later, he rose back up and kissed me fully on the lips.

"Bella…" he whispered.

I copied his movements, starting at his neck and working my way down. After all, he was the experienced one. As if I could no longer control myself, I inhaled his heady scent and licked the side of his neck. He shivered slightly in surprise.

His fingers twisted at the bottom of my skirt before hiking it up to reveal the white flesh of my thighs.

I stood up and pushed the skirt to my ankles, the only scrap of clothing left on me was and old pink pair of panties that Emmett had bought for me as a joke. I wonder what he would think about how I was making use of them.

My breath caught and sped up as he started kneading his hand upwards. Wetness seeped through my panties as his fingers inched closer and closer to them.

His hands grazed over the fabric where my clit was expertly, rubbing it gently. I gasped and writhed under him in contentment, eagerly pushing my panties down for better access.

He slipped a single finger into me, then a second. His thumb didn't stop rubbing my clit. I whimpered his name at the new sensation.

Right before I reached my release, he slid his finger out and smiled deviously. With apparent skill, he unbuckled his belt buckle and his thick erection sprang out.

I eyed it hungrily, trying not to be too fascinated by it. I mean, it was the first time I'd seen _one_ before besides pictures in health class long ago.

"It's so big," I muttered uncertainly. "I hope it fits…"

"We're meant to be. It will."

I reached toward his cock and began pumping my hand up and down it, managing to barely fit my whole hand around. A little bit of pre cum hung at the tip. Experimentally, I licked it.

He moaned and threw his head back.

"You taste so good," I moaned breathlessly.

With newfound courage, I took as much as I could of him into my mouth, using both hands rub whatever I couldn't.

"Fuck," he groaned.

I rolled my tongue around and was rewarded by another whimper.

"B-Bella, I-I'm gonna—"

Without any warning, he exploded into my mouth. I choked in surprise, but managed to swallow every last bit of it.

He grinned at me like he'd just won the lottery.

"You swallow it all? Hot," he panted.

"Edward, please," I begged.

His eyes never left mine as he entered me in a single thrust. He was big, and I could feel him stretching me everywhere. I bit my lip and dug my nails into his shoulders to keep from crying out.

"I'm so sorry. I love you. I love you. I love you," he repeated over and over.

I nodded and swiveled my hips a little, giving him the green light to continue.

Slowly, he pulled out and slid back in.

It didn't hurt quite as much this time around.

"God Bella. You're so tight," he panted.

He began thrusting a little more forcefully and the pain started disintegrating into pleasure.

My eyes rolled to the back of my head at the overwhelming bliss he was making me feel.

"Edward. I'm g-getting so close! Faster!"

He sped up at my command.

"Fuck!" we shouted simultaneously, both reaching our climaxes.

I collapsed with the hugest smile on my face, basking in what had just happened. Edward and I had just connected in the most intimate way humanly possible.

"You're a natural," he finally said, rubbing my shoulder lovingly.

"Really?" Pride swelled through me.

"Yup."

He pecked me lightly on the lips.

"The best you ever had?" I questioned timidly.

He closed his eyes with a lusty expression. "Definitely."

I giggled. "Thanks."

"Anytime. And I really do mean, any time," Edward said seriously. He chuckled heartily as my eyes widened at the double meaning.

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated. I hope I made everything clear enough. I may have been too vague, but Bella figured out that Edward was THE ONE, tricked Tatiana into thinking she was sick so that Edward could take her home, and they had sex (hope that part was obvious). Yup. I know many of you may be shy about reviewing lemons... Although I cannot force you to review, your feedback is really helpful. Thanks for keeping faith in me guys.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	39. Blown Out Of Proportion

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Many of you requested the lemon in Edward's POV. I'm too excited to write something heartfelt as Edward's first time making love to Bella, so unfortunately that isn't in this chapter. However, once this story is finished (which it will be.), I'll post outtakes.**

**One more thing, I wanted to thank everyone for their constructive criticism on what was my first time writing a lemon. **

* * *

_Chapter 39: Blown Out of Proportion_

**BPOV:**

It's been about two weeks since Edward and I slept together. Since then, he's no longer been as careful around me as before. I've loved it. We've been able to push and pull at each other until release without worrying about anything else going on around us—it was heaven.

Another competition was coming up tomorrow and Tatiana was stressed out since my skates needed polishing and Edward's blades needed to be sharpened but the local pro shop was already swamped.

The competition wasn't a super big deal, but it wasn't something to underestimate either since many of our strongest competitors were also attending. The 'Summer Skate' competition was going to be our first competition going out of town. It wasn't really that far—only to Seattle—but Edward insisted on calling it foreign territory.

I wasn't worried about the competition itself, more of having 'car legs' from the three hour drive. That's why I'd mapped out all the stops we would have to make to stretch our legs (Three an hour). When I showed my plan to him, Edward complained that it would slow us down and waste gas since we would be driving more locally, but I convinced him that it was worth it. There's nothing worse than arriving at a competition with jello-legs.

"What you mean have no time?" Tatiana barked over the phone. I felt bad for whoever was on the other end.

"My students have competition tomorrow and we need you polish and sharpen blades!" she growled and hung up.

"They have no time!" Tatiana sputtered angrily. "You guys need be in top shape and I do not allow sloppy look!"

"Tatiana," I placed a soothing hand on her arm. "I'm sure that it'll be fine."

She scowled. "Okay, okay, you say it fine. I don't want you cry to me tomorrow when judge don't give you first place because of unrefined appearance you have!"

Edward rolled his eyes and led me out of the rink for the easy drive home.

As soon as we arrived at our destination, I ran into the kitchen, eager to start a new recipe I'd been dying to try. Edward went upstairs to pack for tomorrow.

About ten minutes later, he joined me in the kitchen.

"Did you finish packing?" I asked.

"Nah, I'll finish it later."

I shook my head smiling. Always the procrastinator.

"Did you?"

I gave him a look.

"Of course you did," he huffed sarcastically. "I wouldn't be surprised if you'd finished last week." I smiled. "You did, didn't you? I know you so well."

I guess he did.

"So, what are your goals for tomorrow?" I asked easily.

He cocked his head to the side willing me to elaborate.

"I mean, what do you want to accomplish at the competition tomorrow?"

"Stay vertical," he joked.

I laughed. "What are your goals for tomorrow, _besides_ staying vertical."

"Not falling?"

I rolled my eyes. "Is that the best you can do?"

"I dunno, maybe perfect that lift that Tatiana's been on our backs about for awhile?"

I nodded. "That's one of mine too. Oh! And definitely being more in sync on the footwork, I want our steps to be flawlessly coordinated."

"I want you guys _move as one_," Edward snickered, mimicking Tatiana.

"Exactly." I laughed at his fake Russian accent.

"Okay, I have the agenda for tomorrow all planned out. There's a typed up copy of it on your desk, but I'll give you a rundown anyways. So, we'll wake up at seven tomorrow, and Alice will be here at about seven thirty. At about ten she should be done fixing us up, and then we'll eat a small snack—maybe a banana—for energy, but nothing too big because we don't want to skate on a full stomach. So then we leave the house at about ten thirty and arrive at the rink at about eleven thirty, but I was thinking that we might want to leave a bit earlier in case we get lost since it's our first time going to this rink or if there's traffic. Do you think we should leave earlier?" I rambled.

I looked down at the paper in my hands waiting for an answer. A few seconds of silence passed with no answer. Tilting my head up, I realized that he was looking into space and nodding every ten seconds or so.

"Edward?"

_"Edward?"_ I said a bit louder.

He did a double take and removed an ear bud from his ear. Had he been listening to his iPod this whole time?

"Were you even listening to a word I was saying?"

"Yeah…"

"Okay, then what time are we leaving the house for the rink?" I tested him.

"Uhh," he stalled. "Nine?"

Wrong.

I felt my bottom lip twist into a nasty frown.

"No, sorry I meant ten!" he corrected himself.

Still wrong.

"You weren't even listening! I can't believe I'm putting this effort into scheduling our time for tomorrow and you're not even paying attention!" I cried.

"Chill out, Bella," he smiled lazily, patting my head.

"No!" I pushed his hand away. "I want everything to be done in an orderly fashion. I'm not saying that my schedule will make us will the competition, but I want to increase the chances."

He stared at me blankly for a moment.

"Why can't you just go with it? It's so…so…" he trailed off.

He dropped his hands from midair and stared at me with wide eyes.

My own narrowed as I caught onto what he was hinting at.

"Go on. I want to know what you mean by _that_."

"I-I just wish you'd be more spontaneous once in awhile!" he threw his hands up, exasperated.

I recoiled back, stunned by the blow.

"I can be spontaneous! In fact, I'm spontaneous all the time," I glared. "For example," I paused. "Yesterday in the grocery store, I impulsively bought Gala apples instead of Fuji apples since they were on sale and—"

"Wow! That is just _so _fuckingspur-of-the-moment!" he cut in sarcastically. "Face it Bella, you love to plan ahead. You hate when things are rash because when you play stuff back in your head you always find something you could have done better."

"Oh, are you implying that's a bad thing?"

"No…" he stumbled in his argument. "It's not. If there weren't people like you, this society would be a mess—there wouldn't be anyone to keep the balance."

That wasn't exactly what I was looking for. Maybe more of an: 'Of course not, love. It's one of the things I love about you.'

What can I say; I'm a dreamer—and apparently an organizing freak as well.

"Well, guess what? This conversation is going to make me _spontaneously_ combust any second now. Is that spontaneous enough for you?" I spat.

"You organize everything—from our closet to the pantry. When I say everything, I do mean everything. Sometimes I wish you would just _go with it_. Live in the moment, you know?"

"No. I do not _know_," I fumed. "And last week when you wanted to find your khaki shorts and navy hoodie, how fast did you find it?"

He was stuck for a moment. I knew for a fact that he had found everything in less than a minute.

"Bella, I don't want to fight," he sighed.

"Well it sure seems like it," I replied hotly.

I froze, realizing that the first spat that had ever came between Edward and I. We'd had many little arguments here and there, but nothing this intense.

"C'mon, I love you for who you are," he reached to caress my cheek. I turned away from his touch. Hurt sprung into his emerald eyes as he withdrew his hand slowly, leaving the room in a flurry.

I ended up trying my new recipe alone that evening.

Despite his words, I felt the need to call Emmett for reassurance later that night.

After some gentle scolding from him regarding that I was always too busy for him, I finally got to my point.

"Do you think I plan ahead too much?" I asked Emmett in a small voice. "I meant, do you think I'm too predictable…That I need to be, well, more _spontaneous_?"

I winced at Emmett's hearty guffaws.

"Bells," he managed to say through his booming laughter. "If the world didn't have people like you, then people like me who procrastinate and make last minute decisions wouldn't know they were fun!"

He started chuckling at his own joke, but when abruptly stopped when he noticed I wasn't joining in.

Did my habit of planning ahead keep me from being 'fun'?

"So," he cleared his throat. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason," I shrugged.

Emmett was never one to pry, but to laugh it off. God bless him.

"So… Are you nervous for the competition tomorrow?"

I shrugged again, trying to seem more at ease than I was. "Sure. I'm a pro now, Em."

After a bit more of teasing on his part, I bid him a good night with Rosalie—which he promptly replied '_Oh. I plan to'. _I shuddered at the thought. Clicking the red button to end the call, I realized that our conversation had lasted practically an hour. I really needed to see Emmett more often.

Quietly, I navigated around the kitchen to clean up a few things before heading up to Edward's room. Technically, it was now _our _room but with the current situation, I was hesitant to call it that.

The light was already off when I walked in which surprised me. Edward normally liked to go asleep after me. I hoped that our previous quarrel hadn't caused him to decide to go to sleep early.

Pulling the covers over my pajamas, I lay in bed, tomorrow's events running through my mind. Something was tugging in the back of my mind, but I couldn't put my finger on it. I felt like I'd forgotten to pack something, yet I wasn't sure what it was.

My eyes scanned Edward's light blue walls when it hit me. I'd forgotten to pack my turquoise skating skirt! Relieved that I'd remembered in time, I tiptoed out of bed and opened his dresser.

Where the hell was my turquoise skating skirt? Ever since I 'moved into' Edward's room with him, all of our clothing had gotten mixed up.

I scoured through his drawers pulling out anything that was of similar color, but only found a bunch of my panties that he must have pocketed away for his collection (not that I was surprised).

Growing agitated, I tried yanking the bottom drawer open, but it was stuck. With a sharp tug, the drawer opened with a groan and out flew a pile of magazines that fluttered to the ground. Cringing at the loud noise, I spared a glance towards Edward's figure to make sure he was still asleep. He was.

Curiously, I picked one of the magazines up to find that it was only a copy of the notoriously famous playboy.

Grimacing, I began piling them back into his drawer—it was his business, not mine—when I noticed that a few pages had little bookmarks in them. Deviously, I flipped to each bookmarked page. After awhile, I noticed a pattern of scantily clad nurses posing seductively with a stethoscope at hand.

Edward had a fetish for nurses.

Triumphant with my newest discovery, I forgot all about my turquoise skirt and began plotting before finally drifting to a restless nights of sleep.

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated. I know this one was shorter but I'm just glad I got it out.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	40. Battling It Out

**Summary: **

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Just so that you guys have an idea of the timeline, this chapter is taking place in July 2009. (Coincidence that it matches with now.) The Olympics will be in February 2010. **

**Um the F-bomb is dropped in here a few times more than normal. It was one of those days…**

**PS. I seriously think this story is really dragging so I'm trying to hurry along and finish it. **

**PPS. I forgot to mention that the spontaneous thing was adopted from WILAY. I tried to twist it a bit to make it more of my own though! **

* * *

_Chapter 40: Battling It Out_

**EPOV:**

I awoke from an endless night of tossing and turning. Even my subconscious reacted when I knew Bella was angry with me.

I fucking hated it. Why did I have to accuse her of not being spontaneous enough? It was a stupid mistake that I wish I could use a time traveling machine to fix. I knew better than too judge a woman like that to her face. What the hell had possessed me to say the things that I did?

_I just wish you'd be more spontaneous once awhile. _

Stupid. My words continuously replayed in my head.

Groaning at the thoughts of how terrible yesterday had gone down; I sat up to realize that Bella's petite frame was snoring lightly next to me.

I didn't think she would still be joining me in bed considering all the things I'd said. Every piece of me had been convinced that she would take the guest room.

My heart leapt at the possibility. Maybe she had cooled down since our little spat.

I heart the sound of a car door opening and looked outside to find Alice lugging her infamous pink suitcase out of the trunk of her Porsche. Fuck. I'd forgotten all about the competition today.

I looked back at Bella and noticed the slightest hint of bags creeping up under her eyes. That could only mean that she hadn't gotten much sleep last night either.

Glancing out the window I saw Alice starting up the steps to the door.

Quickly I leapt out of bed and bolted downstairs before Alice could ring the bell. Bella needed as much sleep as she could get.

"Hello my favorite ska—" Alice began to chirp loudly.

I threw my hand over her mouth to muffle her high pitched voice.

"Shh," I shushed her. "Bella's still asleep."

"Well wake her up then," Alice glared as she threw my hand off her mouth and reapplied her lipstick.

"I don't think she's gotten enough sleep for the night," I squirmed.

"Too much sex?" Alice snorted.

_I wish._

She giggled at her own joke which indicated that Bella hadn't told her about how we'd slept together yet. Huh.

"No…"

Her laughter faded at my insinuating tone.

"What the hell did you do to her?"

"Nothing!" I defended myself too quickly. I caught sight of her foot tapping impatiently on the wood floor. "Well, we kind of got in a fight," I confessed.

Taking me by complete surprise, she broke out into a wide grin.

"Really? Wow! I'm so proud of you! Wow, you're first fight! This is so exciting! I should throw a party! I mean, we want to remember this forever…"

I gave her an annoyed look to snap her out of her dreamland. Alice's dreamland. I shuddered at the thought.

"Oh."

I nodded at her realization.

"Well your timing is shitty," she noted. "Right before a competition? Really, Edward? Couldn't you have picked another day for your fight?"

She talked about our fight like I had any control over it.

"It's not like I wanted to fight!"

"What was it about?"

"Well…" I felt my face grow hot. "I kind of accused her of not being spontaneous enough."

Alice's expression grew grave. "You are _such _a guy, Edward."

I swelled in pride as she complimented my masculinity.

Alice must of noticed because I swear she muttered 'what a douche'.

"I'm kind of surprised," Alice admitted. "Considering all the girls you've probably been with. I mean, I thought you'd know better than to say something like that."

I slapped my forehead. "I do! I don't know what was wrong with me, it just came out."

"Well, I can see your point though. Bella can tend to schedule ahead obsessively. She was like that in high school too. I could ask her if she could hang out six months from a certain day and she would have a definite answer. It was kind of freaky."

I sighed. "Normally I don't mind it. I guess all the stress was getting to me and just exploded in front of my face."

Alice nodded understandingly. "A similar kind of thing happened while Jasper and I were planning a trip down south to meet his folks. I guess he was a bit frazzled and kind of snapped at me when I accidentally scratched his car with my Juicy charm bracelet."

I raised my eyebrows at her anecdote. For some reason I had believed that Alice and Jasper was some invincible couple that never fought.

"I can't say that it was _all_ bad though. I made him grovel for about a week and he ended up buying me another charm for my bracelet _and_ he let me completely revamp his wardrobe," Alice laughed.

A week? I didn't think I could stand having Bella give me the cold shoulder for a fucking week.

"But—"

"If we're going to talk we'll have to do it while I gel up your hair a bit. There's already been enough time wasted," Alice ordered.

I complied and sat down in the chair.

"Well, what should I do?"

"Apologize," Alice explained simply. "Actually, apologize _a lot_."

"Apology _not_ accepted."

I spun around to find Bella marching into the room.

"Damn it, Edward, you just messed up your hair!" Alice wailed.

Her complaining ceased as we both took in the angry steam fuming out of Bella's ears.

"I can't believe you guys are talking about me behind my back," she accused. "Mostly you," she pointed at Alice.

"I was just trying to—"

"Stop it, Bella. Alice was just trying to help me," I said calmly.

"Bullshit. You made what you wanted in a woman very clear last night. One thing being that she has to be spontaneous." Bella's jaw grinded together. "For all I know, you probably haven't been faithful to me _at all_. I'm sure there are more spontaneous women out there lining up for you."

"Calm down…" Alice tried.

I sucked in a breath. "Don't you dare accuse me of cheating!" I bellowed, springing up from Alice's beauty chair. "I have busted my ass to try to maintain our relationship!"

What can I say? Old habits die hard and having spent most of my teenage life sleeping around, it was hard to break the streak. Before Bella came along, I was almost sure that there could be no force that could stop me, but she did. There was something about her that made me want to make the effort to stay with just one girl.

Tears pricked the corner of her eyes, but I didn't care. It was completely uncalled for her to call me a cheater.

"I need Jasper…" Alice grumbled in defeat.

"I am _insulted_ that you think so lowly of me. If you really loved me, you would have faith in me to not cheat," I said slowly.

"Well, if you truly loved me, then you wouldn't want me to be something that I am clearly not," she sputtered. "I-I don't even want to look at you right now!"

She stomped out of the room in much the same fashion she had entered.

I took a deep breath and sat back down in Alice's chair.

"Sorry about that. Please continue."

She nodded without uttering another word.

There was no denying that I was a hell of pissed off. I had given up my bachelor life style for that woman and it still wasn't enough for her. There was only so much I could give her. It was her own damn fault that she had so many insecurities.

Alice kept her eyes low as she murmured for me to go change and call Bella in. There was no need though since Bella was already on her way in. We passed each other in an icy stillness.

I didn't like it, but I didn't want to be first to give in either.

Approximately an hour later, we were both presentable by Alice's standards and heading into the car.

From the way things looked, the two girls seemed to have made up. That was a good sign.

"I can't say how sorry we all are that we can't make it to go watch," Alice apologized softly. "Em and Rose have work and Jasper couldn't get out of a meeting. I would go, but I'm discussing the winter catalog with some of my designers."

"It's no big deal, Ali," Bella smiled tersely.

"Call me on how it goes."

"Of course," Bella answered warmly.

I ushered Bella into the car, noticing that whatever warmth that had been in her around Alice had left the atmosphere.

Without a word, I turned on an angry, emo radio station. It was what I was in the mood for.

Bella reached over and changed it to some country shit.

My gaze snapped to hers before I turned it back. We went back and forth a few times more like this.

"Stop it! This is _my_ car. _I _get to choose the music!" I hollered.

Silence.

I looked over towards her to find her eyes closed and hands in her lap. The fact that I'd won so easily lessened the high of the victory. She was good. Trying to make me feel all guilty and shit. Well if that's the way she wanted to play it, then it was _so_ on.

The rest of the hours dragged by in the same stony silence. Pretty soon I found myself next to Bella, ready to step on the ice to compete.

My anger only fueled my desire to skate clean. As sick and twisted as it sounded, I wanted to outdo my own skating partner in the competition. There was nothing more or less to it.

It was almost as if whoever won this silent battle would be the one that turned out to be 'right' in the fight.

"Let's get this over with," I muttered. Bella shot her head towards me with a plastic smile on her face. It made me uncomfortable.

We skated out to our beginning pose with a tense determination.

The music began, and I started moving to the pre-choreographed steps.

Our first element was a side by side jump combination. I nailed mine. Looking over towards Bella, I noticed that she had as well.

The rest of the performance continued in a similar fashion. For every jump, spin, or step I would put one hundred ten percent of my effort to outdo her. But somehow she was always right along beside me, matching my intensity as well as frustrating me to no ends.

Before I knew it, the music had finished and I had run out of chances to outdo her in one of the elements.

I wish I could have believed I'd won our unspoken war, but I knew there was no doubt in either of our minds that it had been a tie. We were back at square one. Fan-fucking-tastic.

The audience's applause was almost timid, which surprised me. We had just skated a perfect performance. How were they not on their feet?

We took a bow side by side, and glided off. I was careful to keep my expression cool.

"What is the wrong with you two?" Tatiana immediately fired at us.

I stepped off the ice and put on my skate guards. "I don't know what you're talking about," I replied curtly.

"Hardly," Bella scoffed. "Edward's just hung up about a fight."

"It's not like you aren't either," I shot back.

"Why do you even care?" Bella asked Tatiana. "We didn't fall and skated perfectly."

"No perfect," Tatiana's eye twitched. "No emotion in you two's skate."

"It's not my fault she skated like a robot," I pointed towards Bella.

"Both," Tatiana corrected. "This music is call 'Love Story'. You guys look ready to kill each other when you skate out there."

I opened my mouth to speak, but the announcer began reading off our scores.

"And here are Isabella Swan and Edward Cullen's scores: 6, 6, 6, 6, 5, 6, 6, 6, 5, and finally 6."

I cringed at the overwhelmingly low numbers. It didn't make any sense.

"Isabella Swan and Edward Cullen are currently in fifth place."

A shocked current rippled through my body.

Tatiana had a solemn 'I told you so' look on her face.

Stiffly, I stood up and waved toward the crowd before walking off.

Tatiana led Bella and I into a deserted locker room in the far end of the rink. Silently, she motioned for us to shuffle in.

I took a seat on the rusty bench and began untying and wiping the leftover ice off my skates. There was no use in keeping them on since we wouldn't be taking a podium picture.

Silence engulfed the room before Bella finally spoke up.

"Why didn't we win? Or at least get higher marks?"

Tatiana shook her head. "You two were not team. _Pairs_ skating mean teamwork. Maybe you land all jumps and do all footwork perfect but you guys not skate as _one_."

I nodded, starting to get her point. Instead of working together, Bella and I had been working against each other.

"Well, I leave now. Get on with it," Tatiana said airily, motioning towards Bella and I.

She wanted us to make up. Pah. Like _that_ was ever going to happen. Bella was stubborn as a mule.

We sat there, glowering at the bland walls and refusing to look at each other.

Finally, Bella spoke up. "I can't believe you had to start all of this."

Something inside me snapped at her words. I couldn't believe she was placing all the blame on me.

"It was just one tiny little comment that you blew out of proportion like you always do!" I roared. "Why do you do that?"

"Because, Edward," she cried.

"Just because. You react like that 'just because'," I said flatly. I lay my face in my hands so she couldn't see how frustrated I was.

"No," she whispered. "You mean too much to me. Hell, I'm sure that there are dozens of girls out there that would be so much better for you—perhaps someone that can take you by surprise the way that you like it and not overreact when you say something. Just someone that's everything I'm _not_."

My head rose from my hands to meet her helpless expression.

Immediately, guilt swarmed over me like I'd just been injected with it.

I felt like a fucking asshole.

"Bella…"

"Edward, I completely understand if you've changed your mind and want to keep our relationship strictly professional."

"But…"

"I don't want you to feel some obligation to stay with me just because we slept together," she continued. "I mean—"

"I'm sorry!" I blurted.

She blinked at my sudden outburst.

"W-what?"

Damn it, she was going to make me say it again.

"I'm fucking sorry, okay?" I repeated.

I hated apologizing. It wasn't in my nature.

She stared at me. "But—"

"I'm sorry for _what I said_. It was stupid and I didn't really mean it. I was just so pissed off for being so stressed out about everything that was coming towards us."

"I don't understand…" she trailed off.

"I. Was. An. Asshole," I sighed bluntly. "I like—no, _love—_you like you are and don't want you to change."

A tear formed in the corner of her eye.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry for accusing you of cheating. That was out of line," she sniffled.

I nodded in agreement.

"And Edward?"

I looked up at her.

"Thanks for apologizing," she said shyly. "I know how hard that is for you."

Embarrassed, I flicked my wrist like it was no big deal. I knew she saw past it though when a smile crept on her face.

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated. The count has been kind of low so please take a minute! I love to hear from you guys!

Apologies for any mistakes. I jumped around a lot while writing this chapter and I'm too tired to reread it 20 times before posting. Thanks for understanding.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	41. Rollercoaster Ride

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Just so that you guys have an idea of the timeline, this chapter is taking place in July 2009. (Coincidence that it matches with now.) The Olympics will be in February 2010. **

**Hey, guys. Yeah? Can you believe it? Another chapter already? Ha! Yeah, I know! **

**PS. I know I mentioned this in the last chapter, but this idea involving being 'spontaneous' was inspired by 'What I Like About You' (the show)**

**PPS. Litany Gone started a thread for this story on Twilighted! Whoo-hoo! Here's the link… If it doesn't show up, it's on my profile as well. **

**www(dot)twilighted(dot)net****/forum/viewtopic(dot)php?f=44&t=5192&p=598890#p598890**

**I'm not really familiar with Twilighted, but I'm trying to figure it out! **

**PPPS. I can't emphasize this enough. OTI is an M rated story. To warn you in advance, this chapter has a lemon.**

* * *

_Chapter 41: Rollercoaster Ride_

**BPOV:**

Outfit. _Check_.

Hair. _Check_.

Spinach from lunch not stuck in teeth. _Check_.

Shaved. Check.

Cleavage. _Check._

Everything was set. I took a deep breath. Pah, I'd show Edward Cullen spontaneous if it was the last thing I did.

Although Edward and I had made up after the competition, I still had a lingering grudge towards his comments about how he wished I were more reckless.

Sure, I'd been planning this for about a week now, but it was still impulsive, right? If it wasn't, I wasn't sure what was.

After taking the first step to buying a sexy little nurse's outfit online, I'd been unstoppable. I'd even typed out a script and memorized it so I wouldn't mess up the lines when he came in._ It had to be perfect_.

I heard Edward enter the front door from downstairs. He was home.

"Bella?" Edward's voice called out.

"I'm upstairs, um, reading!" I skimmed my script one last time and placed it on the bedside table.

The stairs creaked as I listened to Edward's footsteps getting nearer and nearer.

He entered, somewhat out of breath.

"Hey Bella, I—"

"Hello, Mr. Cullen. I believe you're due for a check up?" I stood up from my place on the bed and sauntered towards him, swaying my hips from side to side.

"No, wait don't—"

Behind him, Esme and Carlisle came into view.

What the fuck.

Aw hell.

Everyone was frozen for a minute before Esme cleared her throat and put on a smile. Bless her heart.

"Why hello there, Bella!" Esme smiled awkwardly, obviously in appraisal of my nurse's outfit that was barely covering anything.

"Good evening," Carlisle greeted.

Edward snickered. How the hell could he be finding this funny?

Mortified, I threw on the nearest robe to cover all the skin that was showing.

"Hi…"

"My parents just wanted to check my place out. Make sure that I'm taking care of it," Edward explained.

"You seem to have plans…" Esme hinted. She gave Edward a stern glance. "I'm just a little disappointed that Edward didn't tell me that _this_ was going on…"

"Mom!" Edward groaned.

"No, um… We don't have plans." I scrambled for something to say. "You should stay for dinner! I was just about to, um, start the, err, pot roast."

I really hoped we had pot roast in the fridge.

"Oh, honey. Thanks for the offer but we'd hate to interrupt anything," Esme winked.

My cheeks flamed hotter than the Sahara. "No, no. You wouldn't be interrupting."

"Carlisle and I already have already scheduled date night at the diner. We were only dropping by to check in," Esme added.

"Oh." I was so relieved that I think I could have melted into the floor.

"Well," Carlisle exclaimed. "We best get going now. Have a wonderful night."

I didn't even want to think about what he was implying.

"Be safe!" Esme chirped as she exited.

I wanted to bury myself under the covers and never come out.

They finally left the bedroom, leaving me to drown in my own humiliation.

From downstairs I heard Edward ushering his parents out of the house.

"Bye, mom. See ya, pops," he howled gleefully.

"Call me!" Esme reminded him. She was clearly dying to know what was going on between Edward and I.

I was going to face hell when he came back up here. Why oh why did I have to try to be spontaneous? Stupid Edward for getting me into his mess… My mood had soured immensely since fifteen minutes ago.

Moments later, Edward reentered the room with the same cheesy grin on his face. "So, what's up?" he asked nonchalantly.

I didn't reply, deciding him to give him the infamous silent treatment.

"I think they liked you!" he sang.

Realizing I was seriously upset he said, "C'mon

Peeved, I thrashed in the bed sheets having a mini tantrum. To my horror, the wind made from my 'thrashing' caused my sex script to flutter down from the table onto the floor. Aw hell. Why didn't I shred it instead?

I eyed it nervously.

"What's this?"

Edward bent down to pick it up.

"Nothi—"

His eyes scanned the typed out letters amusedly.

"Title: Payback—this has got to be interesting_—_Purr_: Hello, Mr. Cullen. I believe you're due for a check up_?" he recited from the paper.

I brushed bright red, madly hoping he wouldn't continue. He laughed, turning me into a ripe tomato. Gah, the scumbag was getting a kick out of it.

To my embarrassment, he continued reading. "_Savor his shock. Ha! Bet he didn't see that one coming."_

He snorted and but was relentless.

"_Play with the stethoscope above neck and twirl a lock of hair. Slowly, walk up to him. 'Accidentally' drop the stethoscope and bend down to pick it up, giving him a nice view."_

I thought I was a sex genius for thinking of that.

His eyes widened as he read on. Ha! It was better than nothing. I loved getting a rise out of Edward.

_"Bat eyelashes. _Say_: 'I'll be doing your physical today'. Pause. _Say_: 'Mr. Cullen, I'll be needing to remove your shirt and pants.' Place stethoscope over his chest. 'Now inhale deeply… and exhale.' _

He took a deep breath.

"Say_: 'Your pulse seems very strong'. Place tiny kiss down his chest until the waistband of his pants. _Say:_ 'Now on with the exam.' Gently remove his pants, letting them drop to the ground."_

His voice began to shake.

"_He better have a damn hard on by now. Take it in your hand. _Say_: 'Well, you seem to have a rather large problem here.' Bend down and swirl your tongue around it and…"_

… GOD DAMN IT!" Edward bellowed suddenly.

He crumpled up the paper into a ball and threw it across the room, yanking me towards him. I squeaked in surprise when his hands squeezed my ass.

"You and your fucking little schemes," he panted.

Reaching forward, he tore the little outfit off, sending the silver buttons flying everywhere. The only things left on me were the red fishnet stockings with embroidered crosses at the top and the cap.

His eyes basked me in greedily.

"God, you're so beautiful. I love you so much."

Before I could reply, telling him that I loved him as well, I found his hands on my breasts, groping them desperately. His dexterous fingers brushed my nipple, making me cry out into the open. Abruptly, his mouth descended on my own, muffling my noises.

He squeezed my nipples suddenly, causing my hips to buck wildly into his groin.

I whimpered in frustration as he pulled away to remove his belt.

Quickly, I dropped to my knees and clumsily pulled the fabric down to his ankles. Never breaking my gaze from his, I pushed his rock hard erection into my mouth until it couldn't go any farther.

Edward's eyes rolled to the back of his head and his fingers laced through my hair so that it wouldn't get in the way.

My mouth bobbed up and down on his anatomy in return for his pleasurable hisses and grunts. I continued pumping him and could feel him starting to jerk in my mouth. He pushed my head away from him as he bent down to swirl his tongue around my nipple while rubbing my clit in tiny circles with those nimble fingers.

"Edward…" I pleaded.

Slyly, he slid a finger in, still using his thumb to excite my clit.

"More."

A second finger entered.

"I n-need you," I managed to get out.

Deviously, he removed his fingers and brushed my wet folds with his cock.

"Please, Edward. Stop teasing and fuck me!"

Complying, he thrust into me. The friction sent a bolt of ecstasy through my body that I never could seem to get enough of.

"Fuck," he breathed heavily. I placed one leg around his waist for deeper penetration.

"Faster!" I demanded, wildly bucking into him.

He quickened his pace just as I had asked.

"Ohhhh…" I moaned. "Right there!"

My screams of pleasure echoed through the walls and I was quite sure that all of Forks could probably hear me. I couldn't have cared less. Fuck them all as long as Edward and I were together.

With each thrust gaining momentum, I could feel my walls starting to clench around him. A flood of bliss surged through me as my orgasm came, making me see stars. He thrust one last time before groaning my name loudly and sinking into the mattress.

"I love you… so much," I murmured, drawing hearts over his chest.

I waited for the usual cocky comeback, but it never came.

"I love you, too," he whispered, turning his head to kiss the top of my head.

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated. I know this one was short, but only because I wanted to update as soon as possible!

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


	42. Panic Mode

After going through a handful of unsuccessful figure skating partners, Bella Swan is on the verge of giving up her skating career. When her coach pairs her up with Edward Cullen, she decides to give her gold medal dreams one last shot.

A/N (Author's Note): ALL HUMAN.

***IMPORTANT*:** I will be posting pictures that correspond with some chapters, so if you see text followed by a bold **(number), **that indicates that there will be a link to the picture on my profile.

I hope the pictures give you a better sense of all the skating positions... so please check em out!

**Hey guys, here's a little timeline:**

**The Olympics will be occurring in February 2010. **

**Currently, it is June 2009 (coincidence that it matches with now.) Now we're going to forward to December, 2009. **

**------FAST FORWARD-----**

* * *

_Chapter 41: Panic Mode_

Six months later. (Dec. 2009)

**EPOV: **

"I'm so excited! You won't believe how excited I am. I am so, so, sooooo excited!" Alice squealed, emphasizing all the so's.

I sighed.

"How did you know about this again?"

"I can see the future. _Duh_," Alice rolled her eyes like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

I had ordered Bella's engagement ring today.

Yep. That's right—Edward Cullen was ready to settle down. Sure, Bella and I hadn't known each other for long, but the past year with her had been like flying. I didn't think life could get any better.

I loved Bella and I was pretty sure she loved me. I wasn't going to see anyone else and I sure as hell hoped she wasn't either, so why not just make it official earlier?

I wanted everyone to know she was _mine_.

The only down part was in the beginning when we revealed 'us' to Emmett. I can now say that I've been to hell and back. He made me sign another few dozen documents swearing not to hurt Bella. It was done in a tiny room with a wooden chair in the center, lighted by a flashlight. Emmett and Jasper paced back and forth for the good part of the afternoon listing everything they'd do to me if I broke Bella's heart.

Not likely.

I didn't even want to begin to imagine his reaction to my proposal.

Nevertheless, this morning, after Bella had left to meet Rosalie for brunch, I'd decided to do something about my decision and called Leah, an old family friend back in Chicago who was a private jeweler.

She picked up on the first ring.

"Hey hon. Nice to finally hear from you," Leah's familiarly sarcastic voice rang through the phone.

"Leah," I breathed. "I need a favor."

"Of course, kid only calls for a favor," Leah garbled practically inaudibly.

After about a half hour of begging and bribing, I finally convinced her to design the ring.

"Please, Leah. I know you rarely design or make any more jewelry, but let's face it. You're the best in the business," I pleaded.

It was true. Leah had an enormous amount of talent for working with jewelry, but she loathed it, claiming that working with all the tiny pieces gave her headaches.

She had managed her own private jewelry business for quite some time, but after orders started backing up and the stress became too much, she left her work to become a publicist.

"Alright, kid. I'll send you a few sketches in the next couple of weeks and we'll talk then," Leah acquiesced. "It seems that Forks has done you well. If it weren't for all that smooth talkin' I wouldn't have believed I was talking to the same kid that banged a different one every night."

I snorted. "Not _every_ night."

She chuckled. "Close enough. Treat her well, seems like you have an awful lot on the line."

"I will, Leah. Thanks so much."

Less than a minute later, the doorbell rang, signifying that someone was at my door.

It was Alice.

"OH MY GOD, I can't believe you're going to propose!" her high pitched voice pierced through the air. Wincing, I backed a good five steps away from her, still trying to get my ears to stop ringing.

What the hell? How did she…

"What the fuck are you talking about?" I managed.

"I saw it, silly!"

"Saw what?"

"The proposal!"

"The Proposal, as in the movie?" I asked.

"No, you idiot. You proposing to Bella!" she hopped up and down excitedly.

"It hasn't even happened yet!" I shot back, stunned.

"No," Alice shook her head cutely. "I had a vision of it happening! Like the future!"

I stood there, utterly bewildered.

"There's no such thing as—"

"Psychics? Fortune tellers? Oh please," Alice fanned herself. "Although I do admit that we're starting to go extinct."

"I don't believe you." I crossed my arms over my chest.

"You're loss," she shrugged.

She pushed passed me and settled onto my couch comfortably. Like a dog, I trailed behind her in a mist of confusion.

"I think you should go with the second or third sketch. I mean, the first one is nice, but I don't think it's very Bella-like, you know? But you know how Bella is and…"

"Alice," I stopped her. "Again, what the fuck are you talking about?"

She stared at me like I was an incompetent fool.

"The sketches that Leah's going to send for the engagement ring design, _duh_," she replied.

I rolled my eyes and slapped my forehead. "Of course," I said sarcastically. "How did I not realize that earlier?"

She stuck her tongue out at me.

Her expression softened and became thoughtful. "I'm glad it's you rather than anyone else. You're exactly what Bella needs."

I nodded, beginning to calm down from Alice's surprise visit. "Thanks. That means a lot."

"I'm serious; I was really worried about Bella until you came along." She rubbed her eyes, as if just thinking about it made her weary.

"Yeah," I muttered quietly.

"So Alice," I hinted slyly.

Her eyes narrowed, already smelling that I was about to ask for something.

"Since you're a psychic and all, could you tell me what she'll—"

"Nope," she popped the end of the word. "I can't tell you whether she's going to say yes or not, but what I can tell you is that she's a fool if she doesn't."

"Why?" I whined like a little kid.

"It's just not how it works."

"Psychic! Pah! What a scam," I grumbled.

"It's not," she said seriously. "I'll prove it to you. Bella will walk through this door in four… three… two… one…"

I whipped my head towards the door, and sure enough, the door knob rattled and Bella entered with a bag of take out in her hands and sopping wet clothes. Her hair was shiny from the raindrops, sprawled wildly across her face.

She shook the excess rain off herself while I laughed.

"I told you to bring an umbrella," I chirped.

She glared at me. "Well it wasn't raining when I headed out so it's not my—hey, Alice?"

Her rich brown eyes scanned the room and locked on Alice's petite figure.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was just heading out," Alice sang. "You kiddies have a good time."

"What? No, you can stay if you—"

"I'll talk to you later, Bella!" Alice slipped out the door.

Bella turned to me. "What was that all about?"

"Alice just came by to… talk…about our costumes," I lied lamely.

"Oh," she frowned. "What for?"

"Nothing you should concern your pretty little head about," I smiled sweetly.

She laughed and stood on her tiptoes to peck me on the lips.

"You're probably right."

Of course I was.

"How was your brunch with Rose?"

I stared at her; something was off about the image. She was wearing an oversized white hoodie that I didn't recall having.

"Whose jacket is that?"

She turned her back to fix a few flowers that were drooping on the table. On the back was the word 'Black' in giant capital letters.

"What? Oh, and I ran into Jacob—you remember him—in the parking lot."

"Black? Like your old…" I trailed off, making a face. "I thought he moved."

"Yeah, but he's been up here more often since his dad is having health issues."

"Oh." I tried to keep my calm, but my insides were fuming. "Why are you wearing his jacket?"

"I was cold and wet and he offered it to me," she replied nonchalantly.

"You could have brought my jacket with you…" I grumbled.

"Quit being a baby," she sighed. There was a split second a silence before she spoke up again. "He asked me out to dinner." What. The. Hell? I opened my mouth to protest but she was too quick for me. "He didn't really know we're dating."

"What did you say?" I held back the urge to snarl.

"I rejected him very politely and told him about you. Then, I kindly invited him to dinner here tonight." She looked at me closely. "Oh stop being so sensitive wipe that frown off your face; it was the right thing to do. He hasn't had a homemade meal in an awful long while."

I continued to pout. I had an aversion to Bella interacting with other men in general, especially ones that had ties to her skating past that I wasn't a part of.

"Aww, you're being all possessive," she cooed and ran her hands through my hair.

I growled. "For good reason too. I mean, seriously, this guy has a history with you… And I don't like that you're wearing his jacket. By the way, take it off. It's dripping with rainwater and going to ruin the wood floor."

She scoffed and to make a point, pulled the damn jacket tighter around her. "Be nice. I'm going to go upstairs and change."

"By all means, go change," I mumbled.

She reached one of the huge sleeves up and rung some of the water out of her hair. As she put her arms back down, I swore I saw her _sniff_ his jacket.

What. The. Hell?

"Did you just smell his jacket?"

She blinked. "What?"

"You just sniffed his jacket!" I cried.

"What are you talking about? I didn't sniff his—"

"You didn't even notice that you did!" I cut off her indignant defense.

She threw her hands up in the air and sighed with annoyance. "I am going upstairs and I will speak to you later when you are being reasonable."

I rested on the couch, tapping my fingers impatiently on the side table. I'd never spoken to Jacob but I already despised him.

How could she just smell his jacket like that? It probably had his scent all over it.

It's almost like an unspoken male code, but after a certain age we become very sensitive about how girls perceive or smell. Well, I guess some guys don't really ever 'catch onto' this 'unspoken male code' so sucks for them since they have B.O. forever… But that's beside the point. Point is that in a way, we guys kind of mark our dominance by smell.

Sounds like the craziest shit ever, but it is serious stuff.

One girl once told me that I smelled like peppermint with a dash of cinnamon—probably the best ego-booster _ever_.

Did she like Jacob's scent? Even more important, did she like Jacob's smell _more than mine_?

Aw, hell nah.

I contemplated this for a few more frustrated minutes.

Suddenly, a loud crash sounded from upstairs. It sounded like glass.

My heart rate spiked.

_Bella_.

I jumped out of my seat and sprinted up the stairs to the bathroom where a light as on.

Bella sat on the floor with her hands encasing her legs and her head buried in her knees. On the counter was one of Esme's glass soap dispensers, toppled over and broken. The shards were scattered everywhere, but luckily none were on the ground.

Alarmed, I shouted, "Bella!"

Her sobs grew more pronounced.

"Bella," I whispered. "Bella," I said again, this time more panicked.

She looked up at me with glassy eyes and tear stained cheeks.

"What happened? Are you okay? What was the noise I heard?" I fired questions off, terrified.

"Edward," her voice was dry. "I just realized…"

"What?" I pleaded.

"I just realized that I…" Pause. This was killing me. "That I… I'm two days late for my period," she wailed.

I froze, shocked.

"Fuck," I exhaled.

Could she possibly be…? With my…? But what about…?

She started crying again. Quickly, I recomposed myself.

"It's only two days," I tried. "You're probably just a little late this month."

"No, you don't understand. My period is _always_ on time. I'm _never_ late!"

"Okay, okay." I crouched down and rubbed circles on her back, trying my best at soothing her. "Y-you stay here and calm down. I'll go to the pharmacy to get you some pregnancy tests."

She closed her eyes.

Gently, I picked her up off the floor and walked into the bedroom to lay her on the mattress.

"I'm going to head out, okay?"

She nodded.

"Do you want anything—a glass of water or something?" I offered.

She shook her head.

"Okay," I nodded quietly.

I grabbed my jacket and my keys and made my way towards my door. Right before I reached the door knob, I paused and turned back around.

"Listen, no matter what happens I'll be here to support you," I said in hopefully a tough, sincere voice, yet my insides were in full panic mode.

Quickly, I hustled to my Volvo and sped off to the nearest drug store.

I could barely concentrate on the road, too many thoughts were swirling in my head at once.

How could this happen?

We always used a condom. I was the master at putting them on.

She told me she was on a pill.

Shouldn't this give us 99.9% immunity against pregnancy? Fuck, what if we were the 0.1% that experienced the freak accident?

Shit, it's not like we could still skate if she was preggers. All the hard work. It would add up to nothing. I knew it was Bella's dream to win Olympic gold. Our chance was in a mere three months.

What if she fucking hated me for getting her pregnant?

It would be all my fault. _I'd _be the one ruining her dream. _I'd _be the one hurting her—something I swore never to do.

Cursing under my breath, I slammed the car door and speed walked the aisles of the store, trying to find the pregnancy tests.

A-ha! Finally, I found them. There were so many brands and types, I wasn't sure what to choose.

Too edgy to look through them all and compare them, I grabbed at least 15 kinds and threw them into the basket and went to the check out stand.

The cashier was a middle aged woman with tired eyes. Her eyes widened and she tsked her tongue as I threw all the merchandize onto her stand.

"Ma'am," I addressed her through gritted teeth. "Will you stop your gawking and fucking ring me up?"

She closed her mouth and scanned everything in a blur. That was more like it.

I doubled the speed limit on the drive home and somehow, I arrived back at my front door.

Taking a breath, I took the keys out of my car engine and opened the car door.

My insides were in full panic mode, but I pushed it aside for the moment being.

The least I could do was be strong for her.

* * *

A/N:

A review would be greatly appreciated.

Okay, I know you guys are probably all like WTF; what the hell are you doing girl? Jacob? Bella's preggers? Can't you just get on with it? Bear with me.

REVIEW for any CLARIFICATIONS, SUGGESTIONS, or MISTAKES

Thanks.


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